When the weather becomes very difficult for outdoor living, the Peter Maurin Center opens its door about 6pm and lets in homeless brothers and sisters for an overnight stay.
Whenever the Overnight Wintertime temperatures become dangerously low for outdoor living, volunteers from The Peter Maurin Center will visit known campsites and advise interested unsheltered men and women that we will provide a safe place for them to stay during the night. We will arrange transportation for them to our shelter. Once there, host volunteers will provide them with a light, evening meal, address any clothing needs they might have and situate them in clean bedding. For the night, they will be provided with warmth, indoor plumbing, security and dignity as they enjoy a brief respite from the harshness of the wintertime nights in Northeast Ohio.
Each morning, each guest will receive a light breakfast, some food provisions for the upcoming day, and an All Day Bus Pass in order to travel in warmth around the city and/or to return to our shelter if weather dictates that we will be open the next night as well. Literally, hundreds of folks have stayed with us over the years adding up to thousands of overnight stays. We honestly do not know how many of them we have actually "Saved", but we guarantee that 100% of those that have stayed the night with us have left intact the next morning!
We supply a mattress, pillows and blankets to sleep. The follow morning, after a light breakfast and a bus pass, we let the guests return to their tent locations. There are very few organizations in Akron that afford these emergency stays.
From the smallest crumb to a pair of socks, and even a friendly face of hope, The Peter Maurin Center invites anyone who loves community to join us in doing good deeds for those in need. Every single person and effort means the world.