Warming center moves to Clarkston church

A warming center for the homeless in the Lewiston-Clarkston Valley is now located at First Christian Church in Clarkston.

The warming station was located at Chefs Food Store in Clarkston over the weekend, but Monday moved to the church at 840 10th St. The warming center was put together by Elves for the Homeless, a Lewiston-Clarkston Valley-based nonprofit group started in 2019. Amanda Cox, one of the leaders of the group, said in a text that the warming center had to move location because the corporate office of Chefs Food Store was concerned for liability reasons.

Shuttle buses are available to and from the warming shelter. The warming center will be open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. today and Wednesday, according to the Elves for the Homeless Facebook page. Although the warming booth will be open at least through these days of low temperatures, Cox said in the text that she hopes to have a warming station on Saturdays through the rest of the winter. The group will organize the station “as long as we can for the winter — as long as we have a location,” Cox said.

Cox had been working to get the warming station started during the late fall, but stepped up those efforts when temperatures plummeted late last week.

A coalition of nonprofit organizations, businesses and random residents of the Lewiston-Clarkston Valley established a temporary warming station this past weekend for the homeless at a camp in Clarkston. In the tent was food, coffee, warm clothes, blankets, hygiene items, dog food and more. Residents of the homeless camp stopped by for supplies and to visit with volunteers, and then returned to their own tents to hunker down in the frigid weather.

When the warming station went up Saturday, the Salvation Army provided tables, Happy Day Restaurants brought propane heaters and Jollymore’s: A Dining Experience donated paper plates, napkins and utensils. Other supplies came from a variety of sources.

“This is all in less than 24 hours,” said Justina Foster, who is with the Salvation Army.

Cox said she first took note of the valley’s homeless issue in 2019, which is why she established Elves for the Homeless. The group’s efforts focus on direct outreach: They go to the streets and provide homeless people with supplies and guide them to the resources that are available.

“When I was younger, this community really stepped up and helped my family, and I want nothing more than to do what they did for me,” Cox said. “And this is how I decided to do that.”

The valley’s homeless situation has become more visible since the fall, when the city of Clarkston closed two parks where homeless people had been sleeping and directed them to a city-owned right of way behind Walmart. The camp’s population is estimated around 60 to 70.

The valley doesn’t have a homeless shelter.

Cox and Foster said those who want to help should check the Facebook pages from Elves for the Homeless and LCV Help the Homeless. Announcements about what is needed are made there, and people can also ask questions about how they can help. Foster also suggested people bring donations to nonprofit groups, rather than directly to the homeless camp, so those groups can document what is needed and make sure the supplies get to those who are most in need.

Foster started the LCV Help the Homeless page weeks ago after she became frustrated with the dismissive attitude of some social media posters about the plight of the homeless.

“The idea was, anyone who doesn’t want to believe those negative comments, who actually feels compassion and wants to help, can go to one page and say, ‘What do we need to do? Where do we need to go? What can we do?’

“We’re all in this battle together,” Foster added. “God doesn’t look any different at my sins than he looks at your sins. And I have a very colorful past too. I went to federal prisons, and God forgave me. He gave me mercy when I didn’t deserve it.”