Donated food and packaging supplies sit on a counter below “Code Blue” fliers and signage at the shelter for men in Lansdale on Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024. Photo by Dan Sokil | The Reporter.
Shelters plan to stay open into 2026
Borough officials have closed the year with a call for volunteers, as Lansdale’s Code Blue shelter looks likely to be busy into 2026.
“I went and served a shift over at the Code Blue women’s shelter. I wish we could encourage everyone to serve one shift a month: it’s just a few hours, and it’s time well spent,” said councilwoman Rachael Bollens.
“It stays with you all week, it’s really impactful, and there are shelters that are not opening because they don’t have enough volunteers, and then people come here. So they are in need of volunteers,” she said.
Last December, borough council approved the use of a town parks and recreation building at Main Street and Lakeview Drive for use as a shelter for women, organized by the same volunteers associated with Trinity Lutheran Church who have operated a men’s shelter at Trinity since 2009. Later that month, county and borough officials announced an agreement to operate a county short-term housing facility, also on Main Street, and in March, both borough and county officials took part in a groundbreaking there.
In May, organizers of the two Code Blue shelters said 2024-25 set records by sheltering an average of 25 guests per night, opening 54 nights in a row, and over 100 nights total, and sheltering over 150 unique persons for over 2,400 total bed-nights. Training for the 2025-26 code blue season started in late October, and volunteers have staffed the shelters since Nov. 12, while the county said this month their facility will likely open in early 2026.
As of press time Tuesday, Code Blue conditions had been declared through Thursday morning, Dec. 25, with the possibility of further declarations through Dec. 28, as organizers sent out a call for volunteers. Current plans call for the shelter to remain open on the day and night of Dec. 25 and Jan. 1, and the online scheduler for the shelter has times available for both dates.
“We will not open the shelters during Christmas Day without all the shifts between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. filled. Let us make the guests feel special during this day,” said organizers Mark Lanan and Leslie Johnson in an email to supporters and volunteers.
During the year-end council meeting on Dec. 17, Bollens and council president Mary Fuller both asked the community to step up to staff the shelters.
“You can go with a friend, you can bring a book and sit there if you’re doing an overnight shift, so I would encourage folks to check that out,” Bollens said.
Fuller added that there are plenty of options for those with busy schedules.
“It is meaningful, and there are different shifts: if you’re not a morning person, you can do an intake shift, or if you are an early morning person you can do a breakfast shift,” Fuller said.
“And you have two opportunities: not just at the Wissahickon Park building for women, but at Trinity Lutheran for men. So I do recommend it, to take a shift if you have time,” she said.
For more information or to assist, contact Lanan at (215) 272-4979, email [email protected] or follow “Code Blue Shelter – Lansdale, PA” on Facebook for more information.
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