DANVILLE — A local homeless shelter is getting a boost from the city.
The Danville Rescue Mission is receiving $2,500, but Mayor Rickey Williams Jr. says that amount is only going to cover insurance costs.
“I just want to remind the public, though, [that] this does not fully meet the need. It doesn’t even come close,” Williams said. “So we’ve got to make sure that we all do our part as citizens, as aldermen, as community partners, and other organizations. This is just a small help. It does not in any way meet the full need.”
Logan Cronk, Community Development Administrator for Danville, explained the proposal agreement at Tuesday’s Public Works meeting will start on August 1 and end on July 31, 2028.
“This is a reimbursement-based program,” Cronk said. “It heavily limits the liability for both parties. They are to submit receipts for essentially utilities and insurance…”
While it’s not be enough to cover all the shelter’s expenses, it will be beneficial.
Robert Garrison, House Manager for the Danville Rescue, spoke out during the public comment section of Tuesday’s meeting about his firsthand experience.
“Without this place, I’d still be on the street. I’d be digging through garbage,” Garrison said. “It’s nice to have some place where we learn. We’re not just there to sleep. A lot of us are learning new things.”
Michael Ewing, Director of Danville Rescue Mission, shared that while the repairs to the air conditioning and more are helpful, there is still work to be done.
“The building’s being worked on. We’ve got the air conditioners in. They’re putting the cameras in. It’s really going. The roof’s completed,” Ewing said. “The guys are seeing that it’s just not a dump, and we want to give them some kind of sense of pride… Down inside, everybody’s got some sense of pride, and we just want that to show. That’s what America is about. Another opportunity.”
Williams emphasized the community effort needed to keep the shelter running.
“They still [have] to pay utilities,’’ Williams said. “They still [have] to provide food. Eventually, we would like them to have staff. So this is seed money basically. Now, we have to do our part as a community to make sure we step up and fully, truly support them.”
The resale store was mentioned as one place of being able to give back to the shelter, or by dropping off donations.
The shelter also serves as a cooling center in Danville during high-heat index days, and the staff have asked for Gatorade and bottled water donations for those time periods as well.