Press release from Homeward Bound:
In Buncombe County, more than 500 people experience homelessness on any given night. Homeward Bound, the leading local organization working to end homelessness by moving individuals into permanent housing, has an immediate need for general hygiene products, cleaning supplies, and camping gear and is appealing to the greater community for support.
On Tuesday, March 17th, Homeward Bound’s Welcome Home Donation Center located at 205 Elk Park Dr in Woodfin will begin collecting these much-needed items. Donors may drop them off any time of day, but preference is that they are dropped off between 11:00am and 2:00pm outside the front door and placed in the donation bins. In an effort to promote social distancing and to curb any potential spread of illness, donation center doors will not be open to the public and donated items will be sanitized upon receipt.
Items critically needed at this time include: Camping gear, toilet paper, paper towels, trash bags, disinfectant cleaning supplies including wipes, regular baby wipes, disposable gloves, towels, soap, underwear, socks, and unopened (without the seal broken) over-the-counter medications such as pain relievers and cold medicine.
The organization is working closely with area non-profit partners to meet the needs of those experiencing homelessness. In the coming days, an announcement will be made regarding a partnership between Haywood Street Congregation and MANNA Food Bank for community food distribution.
Homeward Bound’s AHOPE Day Center located at 19 North Ann Street will alter its daily hours of operation and increase days of operation per week. Effective on Wednesday, March 18th, AHOPE will operate from 8:00am-12:00pm, seven days a week for the next two weeks. The focus will be on providing basic needs services such as access to bathroom facilities – including showers, distribution of personal mail, and access to stored personal items such as medications and personal effects. The decision to modify the AHOPE hours of operation was made after other community services announced interruption of basic services during weekend hours due to the COVID-19 outbreak. AHOPE also altered its daily closure time from 3:00pm to 12:00pm to allow for proper daily sanitation and to reduce the risk of multi-person gatherings.
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