Freedom Warming Centers of Santa Barbara County has launched a crowd-funding campaign ahead of colder temperatures and rain.
The non-profit homeless emergency shelter program works with 12 partner sites throughout Santa Barbara County offering places or "pop-up shelters" for more than 1,000 people to go each season when weather conditions outside become too dangerous.
During the campaign, which runs through Nov. 15, Freedom Warming Center says every $100 raised will help fund a night of warmth for one person.
When the shelters are open, people and their pets can arrive anytime between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m.
"This is where homeless individuals would not find someone with a clipboard standing at the door asking if they'd stopped drinking yet. Instead if someone is hungry, they feed him; if they are cold, they give them a warm place to sleep. Kindness is measured one person at a time," Dr. Charity Dean, Assistant Director of California Department of Public Health, said in a press release.
Freedom Warming Centers was launched 10 years ago when people in the community were moved by the death of a homeless man people called "Freedom."
Officials say homeless advocates and others wanted to find a solution to help prevent anyone else from dying from cold or rainy conditions in Santa Barbara County.
For more information, click here.
