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New warming center founded to serve Logan's homeless community

wabwarmingcenter.org
The center is located in the St. Johns Episcopal Church on 100 North in Logan, Utah.

Nicole Burnard founded the warming center in order to provide a warm place to stay for those in need during the cold winter of Cache Valley.

The center is located in the St. Johns Episcopal Church on 100 North.

“Last year, I was in my undergrad degree at Utah State and I did an internship at BRAG which is the main homeless service provider here, and through that, I did a lot of homeless street outreach," Burnard said. "And that really opened my eyes, you know, to the severity of the problem here.”

This past December, the warming center served just over 30 individuals, kids and dogs included.

The center has also managed to stay open every night since its opening, being run completely by volunteers from the community.

Volunteers have to be 18 or older and can require overnight shifts since it is open from 7:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m.

“It's just been amazing to see the dedication and support from community members, not only in volunteer hours, but also like financial support. And, you know, donations, blankets and things like that," Burnard said.

Aside from providing a warm place to stay, the center provides snacks and winter clothing for its guests, and it has a confidentiality policy.

No one is allowed into the center during open hours unless they are a guest staying there, or a trained volunteer.

Burnard shared that this warming center is a project that came together after a year of work and striving to help solve a problem that she sees as a major issue in the community.

“This is proof that you can make a change if you can identify a need or gap that exists and, you know, kind of find the people who could support you and who can help you," Burnard said. "It's possible.”

The warming center will continue operating until the spring when the weather warms up with plans to continue operating year after year.

More information on how to volunteer can be found at https://www.wabwarmingcenter.org/volunteer.

Caitlin Keith is a general news reporter at UPR. She is from Lindon, Utah and is currently an undergrad student studying print journalism at USU. Caitlin loves to write and tell people’s stories. She is also a writer at the Utah Statesman. She loves to read, ski, play the cello and watch various TV shows.