Maybe you have volunteered or given a gift of clothing or food, or maybe you have a connection to us in the community. If you have never had a tour of The Open Door Shelter and all it does, the team at IMSci has generously created a video that tells you all about our work, some of our partners and those we serve.  Thank you to the artist, Andra Day for giving us the right to use her powerful voice on the video for 2 years. Please watch to learn more about what the Shelter does today and about our plans to help even more people with housing, job training and access to health care in the future!

Who We Are - The Open Door Shelter

 

Please contact us at info@opendoorshelter.org if you would like to help those in need!

Health and poverty in the United States have a complicated and intertwined relationship. Often, health issues can be the cause of poverty. Medical bills are still the main reason that Americans

file for bankruptcy, and for those with little to no savings even a seemingly minor illness or injur y

can force people to go without food, utilities, or housing payments. People living in shelters are

more than twice as likely to have a disability

than the general population, according to the

Department of Housing and Urban Development.
 

On the other side of this difficult situation, poverty and homelessness can a lso be the catalyst for  new or worsening health problems. For patients who are homeless, properly storing medication, maintaining a healthy diet and consistently going to the doctor are hard to do when they are spending a goo d deal of time trying to find a place to sleep.

Many people experiencing homelessness have also experienced trauma, either resulting from homelessness or in some way leading to it, according to a report from the National Alliance to End Homelessness. 

 

Here at the Open Door Shelter, we have partnered with Norwalk Commu nity Health Center to provide preventative and ongoing care for people in need in our community. Twice a week, their mobile health clinic arrives in front of the Shelter, and th e health care professionals on board start seeing patients. Shelter case managers work with clients to help them get the treatment they need and continue to follow medical advice. 

Thanks to the work that the Norwalk Community Health Center and The Open Door Shelter's case managers have done, we have been able to provide care to hundreds of people in need and reduce local emergency room visits by 52%.
 

Even this mobile program is not enough to meet the needs of the community. As of today, there is a two week waitlist of appointments for the mobile clinic. The Open Door Shelter is working to increase capacity to meet this need.

Calling All (Overly Successful) Gardeners!
 

Is your garden overflowing and you're not sure what to do? Thanks to the weather and some good fortune, we've been hearing from gardeners who have more produce than they can use. We would like to spread the word that YES, we would love to receive some of your harvest!

All fresh vegetables, fruits, and herbs are welcome at The Open Door Shelter. Donated produce will be used by the chefs who prepare meals in our Manna House kitchen, and we'll also be able to offer more fresh food to our food pantry clients.  This week alone we chopped squash and apples for meals.  Eggplant, squash and tomatoes were distributed to the community.  

The Open Door Shelter provides over 300 meals a day, 365 days a year to residents and members of the community. We also serve over 1,000 people through our Manna House food pantry's grocery program. With that many people in need, every donation helps.

Unfortunately we're unable to pick up donations, but please drop off items whenever is convenient for you! The Open Door Shelter is open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.