Warming Center in Royal Oak has High Numbers, Several Needs
(Jason Morgan, Executive Director of Welcome Inn, Jan. 9, 2015)
New Year’s greetings to all!
As I’m sitting at the desk for the “late shift” at the Welcome Inn, Ed has just passed on some numbers that are staggering. The most guests we have ever hosted on a single day was 79 (during the blizzards of last year). We hosted 80 on Monday.
Ed continued, showing me that last week was the highest daily average of any week in our 11-year history; we hosted 67 people each day. That is amazing.
As I thought about these unprecedented numbers, my thoughts drifted to the 9-dozen eggs served for breakfast on Friday and to the empty hand soap bottles in the bathrooms.
With so many people using so very many resources, I ask you to bring in some things a little early this year. Following are some items that we are in critical need of:
~Cleaning supplies for restrooms (70 people each day is a lot of use!)
~Hand soap for restrooms (fortunately we are going through this as well)
~Room deodorizer for bathrooms (see above, 70 people daily)
~Neosporin-style antibiotic ointment (we have several guests treating a variety of wounds)
~Lysol-type spray to kill germs (particularly during this flu season)
~Veggies for salad (carrots, cukes, lettuce, etc.)
~Eggs & milk (of course)
Thank you. It’s through your donations – small and large – that we are able to continue to serve.
About Welcome Inn: The Welcome Inn has much to offer. Guests sign up to take a showers and go to the Laundromat to 
wash those few things that they carry in a plastic bag. A time goes by and they receive appropriate clothing, boots, gloves, hats and personal hygiene items, which are all donated. They apply for a state ID that enables them to get the services they so desperately need. They meet with case managers who address mental health and addiction issues. They get bus tickets. They see nurses from Wayne State. But above all, they are in a place that feels truly “welcoming”.
To visit us or to send correspondence:
SOCH Welcome Inn
c/o Starr Presbyterian Church
1717 W 13 Mile Road
Royal Oak, MI 48073
Send donations to:
South Oakland Citizens for the Homeless (or SOCH)
PO Box 1937
Royal Oak, MI 48036
For a list of shelters and warming centers through Oakland County see:
https://oaklandcounty115.com/2015/01/07/warming-centers-through-oakland-county/
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