Warming Center Open at Senior Center Wednesday, Thursday

An overnight warming shelter will be open Wednesday, Nov. 16, and Thursday, Nov. 17, at the Roseburg Senior Center according to a press release from the City of Roseburg. The senior center will provide a free shuttle bus that will make one circuit around town to pick up guests between 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. and then drive people back in the morning. The shuttle will leave at 5:30 and stop at Templin Beach, Flint St., Visitors Center, the point, Roseburg Public Library, Gaddis Park, and the duck pond. There is no schedule. The bus holds 12 passengers. When it fills, it will return to the senior center and then continue the route. Please be patient and kind to your driver. A warming shelter has been open each night since Sunday, Nov. 13, at the Roseburg Senior Center, 1614 SE Stephens St. in Roseburg. A hot dinner and breakfast are cooked and served by senior center volunteers each day. Sixty cots are available for guests and volunteers. Up to about 30 unhoused people have sought shelter there, Senior Center Board President Steve Lewis said. In addition, the Roseburg Rescue Mission offers overnight shelter at 752 SE Pine St. all year. The City of Roseburg will help pay for operating costs, said Assistant City Manager/City Recorder Amy Sowa. Check-in begins at 6 p.m. Those in need of shelter should arrive by 9 p.m. A cot, blanket and pillow plus a hot dinner and breakfast are provided to anyone staying the night. The shelter is operated by Kimetha Stallings of Onward Roseburg. She accepts donations of warm clothing, sleeping bags, tents, coffee, coffee cups, cup noodles (instant ramen in a cup), soft snacks and hand warmers. The City’s severe event shelter policy allows for a City-funded warming shelter to be open, if possible, during severe weather: • on nights when the low temperatures are predicted to be 30 degrees Fahrenheit or less; • or when low temperatures are forecasted to be 32 degrees Fahrenheit or less with additional factors that could increase a person’s risk of exposure to cold such as precipitation, wind, fog and sustained low temperatures. Questions can be answered via text at 541-236-2089. Please keep them clear and concise.