A sign indicates the hours for the Code Blue shelter for women at 765 E. Main Street in Lansdale, as seen in Jan. 2025. Photo by Dan Sokil | The Reporter.
Volunteers needed to staff two shelters in town
Sunsets are now earlier, temperatures dropping, and a familiar season is about to start.
Organizers of Lansdale’s Code Blue shelters are looking for volunteers to staff two shelter sites in town as soon as this weekend.
“There have been no official county declarations yet, but it looks like there might be. Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday nights look cold,” said shelter organizers Mark Lanan and Leslie Johnson on Thursday.
“Monday night’s forecasted low is 16 degrees. That is cold!! Welcome to Code Blue season,” they 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. In October the Code Blue organizers put out a call for volunteers to attend training sessions and secure clearances before cold nights begin, and in a message to supporters Thursday the organizers said help may be needed soon.
As of Thursday, volunteers were needed for meal providers, intake, and overnight shifts for both the men’s and women’s shelters, with at least one female volunteer needed each shift at the women’s shelter for it to open.
Anyone interested in volunteering must, if they have not yet done so, submit their full name, cellphone number, and date of birth for a background check, and Montgomery County is offering training in de-escalation tactics that will be available online to those interested. Those who have volunteered in prior years must renew their background checks before volunteering. Organizers have also developed an online Amazon wish list for anyone who’d like to help supply the shelter with food, clothing, or other essentials.
During the borough council meeting on Nov. 5, council President Mary Fuller issued a call for volunteers and thanked those who help out each night, and resident Alex Sickler asked for an update on the county facility. Several council members said they had heard no timeline for when the county facility will open but had seen work happening there recently, and borough Manager John Ernst added clarification.
“That is not a ‘homeless shelter.’ that facility is a short-term transitional facility. People who are going to use that facility have to qualify, and they will be interviewed to be there. It is not just a drop-in homeless shelter,” he said.
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