GREEN BAY (NBC 26) — As dangerous cold settles across Northeast Wisconsin, shelters are seeing the impact firsthand.
At St. John’s Ministries in Green Bay, the focus today is simple: keeping people warm and safe.
The Micah Center typically centers on case management and helping people move forward. But with temperatures dropping to dangerous levels, staff say today is about making sure people have a place to go out of the cold.
“Today our main focus is making sure these folks that we’re serving have a safe place to go out of the elements so that they can just exist comfortably, safely, and feel supported,” said Tony Schneider, director of community engagement at St. John’s Ministries.
Staff say they’re seeing more people than usual at both the Micah Center and St. John’s Wellspring location as the cold pushes more people indoors.
Daytime numbers have doubled in just the last few days. Shelter demand is also climbing.
Since the start of January, St. John’s has seen nearly 60 additional people seek shelter. Nightly shelter counts have risen from around 129 people in November and December to nearly 160 in recent nights, even before the coldest weather arrived.
“We’re definitely seeing an increase,” Schneider said. “And the weather wasn’t even as cold as it is now.”
For people who are unhoused or struggling with addiction, Schneider said extreme cold creates another daily hurdle, on top of everything else they’re already managing.
For many, the focus is simply getting through the day, where to go, how to get there, and how to meet basic needs. When temperatures plunge, staying warm becomes one more urgent decision.
“Add on top of that how they’re going to stay warm, if they’re going to stay warm, and where they’re going to do that, that’s just another barrier that they face that day,” Schneider said.
To keep up with the increased demand, St. John’s Ministries is opening its facilities on additional days, including times they’re not normally open, relying on staff, volunteers, and community support.
Schneider said Saturdays can be especially difficult for people without a safe place to go during the day, making extended hours critical during extreme cold.
“We’re grateful that we can open up our facilities today on days like this, but then also tomorrow on days when we’re normally not open,” he said, “just to relieve that strain from them and ensure that they have that space to go.”
St. John’s also coordinates with other community organizations, including Warming in the Heart, to make sure people know where they can find help when one site is closed.
Schneider said extreme cold can bring in people who may not have used St. John’s services before. For some, it’s the first time walking through the door.
When temperatures turn dangerous, he said, people know St. John’s is an option, a place they can turn to when they need help the most.
