For you have been a refuge to the poor, a refuge to the needy in their distress, a shelter from the rainstorm and a shade from the heat. – Isaiah 25:4
Our baptismal covenant asks us to “seek and serve Christ in all persons, loving our neighbors as ourselves.” For the past several years, one way St. Stephen’s Cathedral in Harrisburg has fulfilled this promise is by offering a warming and cooling shelter for unhoused women and nonbinary individuals. The shelter has operated on Sunday afternoons during the hottest and coldest months of the year. This past winter, up to 20 of our siblings took advantage of the hospitality, hot drinks, snacks, and a chance to rest and relax on the Sabbath.
Those served have requested that St. Stephen’s keep the shelter open year-round, as there is nowhere else for the unhoused to go on Sunday afternoons. Other local resources such as Strawberry Square, McCormick Riverfront Library, and Downtown Daily Bread are all closed.
St. Stephen’s is recruiting additional volunteers to augment the current crew that keep this ministry going. Shifts are two hours long, and there are always two volunteers on hand. There are several ways to help:
- Churches can sign up to provide four volunteers on a particular Sunday each month or every other month.
- Individuals can sign up for shifts on St. Stephen’s shared calendar.
- Churches or church groups can provide bag lunches for the guests on a regular basis.
Clearances, available at no cost, and Safe Church training are needed for volunteers staffing the shelter. Potential volunteers can contact Kathy Yorkievitz at [email protected] or Sr. Ishmael LeCato at [email protected] for more information.