COLD WEATHER SHELTER
A temperature-based overnight shelter for people who would otherwise be outside in freezing weather. Micah’s Cold Weather Shelter operates mid-November through mid-March each year.
The Cold Weather Shelter program operates out of two separate sites: One site serving men and one site serving women.*
The Cold Weather Shelter operates on a temperature basis. Whether the shelter is open each night will depend on temperature, weather parameters, and other factors. This ministry provides a place for homeless men and women to sleep when they would otherwise be outside at risk of freezing to death.
*Men experiencing homelessness spend each open night at 750 Kings Highway. Men access the building through the back door, up the long ramp.
*Women experiencing homelessness spend each open night at FXBG Baptist Church, at 1019 Princess Anne Street.
The entrance to the women’s shelter area of the church is on the Amelia Street side (red door). Women should look for the lit red door and signage for access.
Criteria
- All guests must be homeless.
- The Cold Weather Shelter program does not exclude people based on criminal history, substance abuse, disability or other mental health condition, unless the person’s behavior becomes a threat to themselves or others.
- There is no maximum amount of time that a guest may use the shelter.
- For safety reasons, shelter guests must ride the bus, drive themselves or come by taxi or police escort. Walking to the shelter is not permitted.
- Guests are not permitted to arrive before the shelter opens at 6:30 pm.
- Guests must leave the shelter during the day, when the bus leaves at at 7:30 AM.
Access
A bus picks up from each evening’s community meal, sponsored by one of the downtown churches. The bus drops off at the shelter and returns in the morning to take shelter guests back to town.
To catch the bus, neighbors should attend the community dinner to wait for the bus, which arrives for pickups between 6-6:30 PM.
Mondays: St. George’s Episcopal
Tuesdays: Common Ground Church @ 1501 Washington Avenue (1st, 3rd, and 4th Tuesdays); Masonic Lodge (2nd and 5th Tuesdays)
Wednesdays: Christ Lutheran Church
Thursdays: Fredericksburg Baptist Church
Fridays: Shiloh Baptist – New Site
Saturdays: Presbyterian Church (1st, 3rd, and 5th Saturdays); Fredericksburg United Methodist Church (2nd and 4th Saturdays)
Sundays: Common Ground Church (1501 Washington Avenue). Note that there is no full community meal offered on Sunday nights; this location is provided only as a bus pickup location.
Click here for full community meals flyer with location addresses.
Guests are permitted to drive themselves or utilize other transportation (taxis, Uber, etc) to the shelter location.
Guests providing their own transportation to the shelter should arrive no earlier than 6:30 PM, and must depart the next morning when the bus departs.
Male guests are not permitted to walk to the shelter. Due to the men’s shelter location, walking is not permitted due to safety.
Female guests may access the women’s site shelter on foot. If arriving on foot, women should arrive between 6:30-7 PM for easiest access.
Operations
Upon arrival at the shelter, guests are greeted by a team of church volunteers who set up cots, check people in, and provides a light snack. Searches are conducted upon entry for weapons, drugs, or alcohol. Staff remain on site overnight.
In the winter season 2024-25, Micah Ministires is operating this program out of two separate sites each open night. One site is provided for men, and one site is provided for women.
Instructions for access and general process are the same for both men and women in the two separate sites.
Support Services
Case managers conduct periodic visits and outreach at the cold weather shelter. Further assistance is provided daily from Micah’s Hospitality Center at 1013 Princess Anne St.
MAKING CONNECTIONS
Are you interested in joining the community of volunteers that supports this ministry? Visit our volunteer page to get connected.
