How Boise, Idaho plans to support a growing homeless population this coming winter – The Arbiter

“If you’re homeless and hungry in Boise, you’re doing something wrong,” said one man at the Sunday Friendship Feast at the Cathedral of the Rockies.

This weekly event provides free meals to Boise residents experiencing food insecurity. The Cathedral of the Rockies typically welcomes up to 50 guests, some of whom have been coming for years.

As guests prepared to leave, many took packed leftover food with them, some taking enough to feed their families. The Friendship Feast is just one example of how communities and organizations in Boise, Idaho, are supporting the homeless and those experiencing food insecurity.

Earlier this year, The Arbiter wrote about how high eviction rates, record heat, poor air quality and a Supreme Court ruling were impacting Boise’s homeless population.

With winter just around the corner, The Arbiter found out what people and organizations dedicated to supporting the homeless are expecting.

Meet the need

The Cathedral of the Rockies relies on volunteers to host the Sunday Friendship Celebration. Pete Schroeder, local mission and outreach coordinator, said they never had any problems finding volunteers.

“(Our) biggest need for volunteers is the Friendship Festival. It takes about eight people to cook it, serve it and do the dishes,” Schroeter said. “Most people think they’re fun, enjoyable and meaningful, so it’s pretty easy to get volunteers. Friends of all, neighbors, all are welcome.”

Protection is essential for survival, especially in winter. The Interfaith Sanctuary is a low-barrier shelter, meaning it does not turn people away if they need a place to stay overnight. They work in symbiosis with the Corpus Christi House day shelter (soon to be Corpus Commons) and care for many people in Boise who have no other place to live.

Jodi Peterson, executive director of Interfaith Sanctuary, said one of their biggest needs during the winter months is propane donations.

“We have a military tent that we put up in the winter,” Peterson said. “We’re adding propane tank heaters so we can get people out of the cold and into the tent.”

Most Boise animal shelters accept cold weather clothing such as gloves, socks, hats and coats. Clothing donations are crucial because many homeless people quickly wear out their clothing. Dirty clothes are often thrown away because washing machines are not available.

As temperatures drop, people in shelters like Interfaith Sanctuary and Corpus Christi House stay inside longer. With such a hot and smoky summer, Interfaith faced a similar problem earlier this year.

“It was such a hard summer…It was (so hard) because it was unrelentingly hot and the air quality was so bad that all of our medically vulnerable – they were really struggling, everyone with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) or asthma suffered.”, any kind of breathing problems became really sick. We had to find a way to keep people inside all summer,” Peterson said.

Life on the streets in Boise is influenced by more than just the weather. Gang-trafficked drugs like fentanyl and methamphetamine are making more and more people addicted. According to Peterson, the number of homeless people is increasing.

Don Ruffing works with Corpus Christi House and is president of his own nonprofit, Boise Low Income Support Inc. Ruffing has supported Boise’s homeless population for years and strives to get to know everyone he works with on a first-name basis.

Don Ruffing said the homeless population has grown so much that he no longer recognizes some of the people he previously had contact with.

“I usually know 80% of the people. I’ve seen them around the area, most of them are on the housing list but don’t have a place to live.”

“I saw that a lot of people got an apartment, but in the last few years there have just been more people. There are probably only 40 to 50% of people who recognize this,” Ruffing said.

The increased population requires more people to help.

Volunteer opportunities at Boise shelters

Every animal shelter in Boise accepts volunteers. Interfaith has potential volunteers apply on their website. Ruffing also mentioned his own mission and invited anyone interested.

“This (work) is hard and there are few people who are cut out for it. I do this when the temperature drops below 20 degrees: I have a group of us walking through the alleys and places in the area where I know people are – it only takes about half an hour .”

Ruffing said his group is distributing hand warmers, warm clothing and emergency hotel vouchers for those who desperately need to get out of the cold.

The Cathedral of the Rockies, Corpus Christi House and Interfaith Sanctuary are just three of many organizations that allow people to volunteer their time to help those in need. Schroeder expressed a message for anyone who volunteers, donates or otherwise helps those in need.

“It’s just one of those things: You know you’re doing good, you’re helping people and it usually gives you some sense of satisfaction,” Schroeder said.

As the cost of living rises and the housing market creates more barriers, homelessness is becoming a reality for more and more people in Boise. But there is also no shortage of people willing to help and they can use help at any time.