Code Purple's emergency shelters open all day Monday and Tuesday
By DOVER — With some areas of the state expected to receive more than 8 inches of snow, Code Purple Delaware has emergency shelters open and ready for those who might need them.
The Kent County emergency shelters will be open all day Monday and Tuesday. Locations are People’s Church (the site for men), at 46 S. Bradford St., and Maranatha Life Changing Church (the site for women and children), at 1235 E. Division St., both in Dover.
For more information, call 800-733-6816 or visit here.
Ennio Emmanuel, president of Code Purple Delaware, said Monday that visitors can expect food, showers, laundry facilities, clean and dry clothes, WiFi and televisions at each shelter. He said addiction services and mental health counseling also are available.
“If they do need support, we have mental health people on call for counseling, drug or alcohol addiction help,” Mr. Emmanuel said.
He said the stress of weather events like snow storms can push people to relapse into drug or alcohol use, so offering support at the shelters is essential. Mr. Emmanuel said Code Purple can offer car rides to behavioral health facilities if necessary to prevent overdoses.
“They’re dealing with a lot of mental health stuff and then the storm comes and then they may have not been using, but they start,” he said. “We’re sensitive to that.”
Mr. Emmanuel said anyone who comes to one of Code Purple’s emergency shelters does need to produce a negative COVID-19 test for entry. If a person comes to the shelter with proof that they are positive for COVID-19, Code Purple will make arrangements for them to stay at a hotel.
Code Purple does offer free COVID-19 testing. If a person tests positive at the emergency shelter, they will be set up at a hotel, as well. Mr. Emmanuel said hotel stays are available through a partnership with the Delaware State Housing Authority.
Face masks are required at the emergency shelters.
Mr. Emmanuel said the two shelters combined can house up to 80 people at a time. With the Dover area having about 8 inches of snow as of noon, the shelters were already nearing that 80-person threshold.
“If we go above that (80 people), we have to put people in hotels or start calling families, begging families to take their family back,” Mr. Emmanuel said. “We’re the last resort.”
Still, Mr. Emmanuel said Code Purple does not turn people away. Last summer, he said the shelters housed a combined total of 120 people.
“The last thing we want to do is send people away, so we never try to say we have a limit because, no matter what, we’ll always find a way,” he said. “We haven’t had to get there yet, but I feel like there’s no limit. We’ll alway try to make sure we can take care of people — especially during snowstorms.”
For those interested in helping Code Purple’s mission, Mr. Emmanuel said hygiene items, food and clothes are always welcomed. The biggest need for Code Purple is volunteers, he said.
“We’re looking for, especially right now during the holidays and the new year, we’re looking for volunteers who have a heart for this work,” he said.
Mr. Emmanuel said Code Purple needs a variety of volunteers — from people who can be at the shelter overnight to those who can help people do laundry to mental health counselors.
He said another way to help is by preparing a meal.
“We do it not just for people in the shelters, but we feed people who are low income and just in need in the community,” he said. “If people want to cook a meal or dessert or bring drinks or snacks or breakfast items, those are always very useful.”
