“I think people, we’re creatures of habit. We get comfortable in the most uncomfortable positions, and that just becomes home.” That was David Pirtle from the National Coalition for the Homeless, explaining to a radio host why he sometimes chose to risk death by freezing on winter nights rather than move indoors. “All I can say is that my fear of the unknown, of what might be waiting for me at that shelter, was worse than my fear of the known risk, you know, of staying out on the street.”

David’s reasoning has been on our minds at Tedford Housing throughout the past three months of preparations for our winter warming center. This week, we opened our doors to provide a welcoming, safe, and comfortable place to spend the night for anyone in the Brunswick area who needs it. The Warming Center is open seven nights a week, 8 p.m. to 8 a.m. until mid-April. Here’s what our guests can expect.

Ensuring safety and welcome

The Warming Center offers low-barrier access, professional and compassionate hosts, and thoughtful amenities. We welcome individual adults, couples, families and people with animals. The center is supervised at all times by two paid staff, who have been trained in de-escalation and emergency response including naloxone (aka Narcan) administration. Our general principle is to only send a person or animal away if their behavior poses a safety risk to others (see complete guest agreement: tinyurl.com/6cnxc784). We have two private bathrooms (sorry, no showers), and we clean the entire facility every day. The interior and exterior of the building are monitored by security cameras, and guests’ belongings are stored securely while they are visiting.

Keeping it simple

Limiting the scope of amenities is one key to the sustainability of the center. Guests can sign up to wash and dry laundry while they’re here. We stock plenty of fresh food (thanks Mid Coast Hunger Prevention Program!), hot beverages, and a bit of warm clothing. But for prepared meals, medical care or a clothing bank, we refer guests to other agencies in town. A community navigator is available next door at The Gathering Place (TGP), which is open six days a week.

Personal space and comfort

In our first few nights, each guest has had plenty of room to spread out.  We anticipate the number of visitors will steadily increase to about 20 per night, as word spreads and temperatures drop. Our main room is 1100 square feet, and there is a smaller room that hosts can offer to those who need more personal space.

Each day when the center closes, we are continuing renovations to allow the Warming Center to encourage sleep. Once we have secured that permission (hopefully by year’s end), guests will have access to a mat or cot for sleeping. For now, it’s just tables, chairs and blankets.

How You Can Help

Most importantly, if you come across someone who is sleeping in unsafe conditions, please encourage them to visit the Warming Center (1 Tenney Way, Brunswick or (207) 607-4552).

If you want to contribute, Tedford is accepting donations of ground coffee and tea to keep everyone cozy throughout the winter (please deliver to our offices at 14 Middle St.). We also list needed supplies for our residential shelter program on our website, tedfordhousing.org/giving/wish-list/. Please do NOT drop clothing or any other donations at the warming center.

In a few weeks, we will invite volunteers to assist during open hours. Subscribe to our newsletter or social media pages to receive announcements.

Note of appreciation

The warming center’s launch has been a collaboration of too many people to name. Renovation labor and materials have been donated by Brunswick Lowe’s, Carrot Signs, Gorrill Palmer engineers and Berean Baptist Church. Our friends at Developers Collaborative shepherded this project to the front of the line with impossibly busy specialists. Their service to our neighbors is love in action.

Mercedes Debowey is the warming center manager at Tedford Housing, a Brunswick-based homeless shelter.