Six months ago, Boston’s overnight shelters were facing an increasingly difficult situation.

The pandemic had forced them to space out their living quarters and reduce intake, and winter was approaching––always the busiest time of the year, when people who normally spend the night outside seek refuge from sleeping in the bitter cold.

De-densification would require new and unique collaborations within the community of social service agencies that support those experiencing homelessness. Agencies like WLP, which had already adapted their programs to address new challenges, needed to stretch further, increase their capacity, and pool their knowledge toward shared solutions.

Given the circumstances, the City of Boston asked St. Francis House (SFH) to create an overflow overnight shelter.

Aiming for 100 beds, SFH selected the Charles River Inn and quickly set to work on the logistics––coordinating insurance, hiring, training, programming, and health care, among other necessary components of the temporary program.

In the hopes of supporting these efforts, WLP extended our expertise in housing and stabilization services for women, as well as COVID-safe meal planning and preparation. According to Andrea Farina, VP of Program Strategy and Initiatives at SFH and Director of the Charles River Inn project, WLP’s outreach was “perfect timing.”

Shortly thereafter, WLP signed on to provide one-on-one advocacy services to the 24 women that would be residing at the shelter, focusing specifically on removing barriers to housing and rapid re-housing. Chef Sherry and her hardworking team were to prepare 200 delicious, healthy meals per day––breakfast and lunch for each guest––to be delivered by volunteers.

Our dignity-focused efforts began with welcome packages, complete with jewelry, self-care products, and warm socks, and have continued through the intense and deeply personal Advocacy work being conducted four days per week with the women staying at the shelter.

This project reminds us that combatting homelessness is never a straightforward task. Even when leveraging $700 rapid re-housing subsidies and a vast network of community resources, long-term solutions are often difficult to pin down––especially considering the horrifying consequences brought about by the pandemic.

Still, WLP is encouraged by efforts at both the City and Federal level that place a priority on stable housing, like the recently-passed American Rescue Plan. We look forward to the stock of subsidized living spaces rising in the coming years as more and more evidence points to Housing First as an effective antidote to chronic homelessness.

"Women’s Lunch Place is proud to respond to the pandemic crisis in concert with St. Francis House, the City, and other partners to provide hope, safety, and nutrition to our city’s’ most vulnerable residents," said Executive Director Jennifer Hanlon Wigon.

"The disparities and inequities that continue to be revealed challenge us to not look away, but instead to innovate and create new ways to alleviate homelessness and hunger."

To our partners at SFH, as well as Boston Healthcare for the Homeless Program, HomeStart Inc, and Pine Street Inn, all of whom made significant contributions to the project, WLP thanks you for your passion and focus, and for your continued efforts to combat homelessness.

Popping Up a Shelter on the Charles River