In this edition of Wes's Weekly Wrap Up, he reflects on the challenges of being homeless during the pandemic and shares information about the LUM Emergency Shelter. Please take 57 seconds to watch the video.

Do you remember where you were on the night of Monday, March 23,

I was home, safe and warm, playing board games with my wife and kids. Logan Smith (not his real name) was lining up in the frigid 37 degree temperatures to get inside the LUM Emergency Shelter. For Logan and many other people in Tippecanoe County who had no place to call home, “Stay Home, Stay Safe” was frighteningly unrealistic.   

LUM was there for Logan on March 23 — and every night since, providing a place to temporarily call home and stay safe. LUM understood that the risk of COVID-19 to the homeless population was not just a health concern for individuals experiencing homelessness themselves but, due to the highly contagious nature of coronavirus, a risk to broader public health as well.

Please, will you make a generous financial gift to the Lafayette Urban Ministry Emergency Shelter, so that we can continue to offer people like Logan a warm, safe and caring place to shelter in these pandemic times?

Wes Tillett, Executive Director

The COVID-19 Response. Even before Indiana issued the Stay-At-Home order, LUM and other community agencies sprang into action to address the realities of the pandemic. Portable sinks were purchased, others were donated. Masks were hand-made and distributed free of charge. Extra protocols were put into effect, such as cleaning, sanitizing, taking nightly temperature checks, and practicing social distancing. And, as has been the case since it began in 1984, the LUM Emergency Shelter never missed a night of offering a safe, warm, secure place to those experiencing homelessness in our community.  

In the first eight months of 2020, LUM has provided over 5,500 overnight stays to 489 individuals, with four of those months in the midst of a global pandemic. All of the adaptation to COVID-19 realities has not been without cost. Additional cleaning supplies and equipment have been purchased and used. Volunteerism almost disappeared entirely during the “Stay Home, Stay Safe” order. Additional paid staff hours have filled the volunteer gap. 

Nonetheless, LUM has continued to address the complex problems facing our guests who are chronically homeless. Addiction, mental illness, emotional and physical disabilities, and unwise choices — all exacerbated by the anxieties of the pandemic — have never been harder to overcome. But the LUM staff members, now led by the new LUM Emergency Shelter director, Briton Weise, have resiliently served our guests, helping the guests to see brighter future possibilities.

Will you help us continue to serve those in our community who are experiencing homelessness? Your gift of $50, $100, $250, $500, or $1,000 to the LUM Emergency Shelter will help LUM continue to provide help and hope to those experiencing homelessness during this global health crisis.

Four Ways YOU can help the LUM Emergency Shelter are as follows:

Your financial generosity is not only an act of hospitality toward those with no home of their own, it is also an investment in the health and safety of the greater community. If you’re interested or need more information, click HERE — or email or call Briton Weise (bweise@lumserve.org | 765-423-2691).

Lafayette Urban Ministry has been awarded an additional $25,000 from the Tippecanoe COVID-19 Response Fund — making the total received so far $90,000 ($15,000 in March, $20,000 in May, $30,000 in July & $25,000 in August). 

The Tippecanoe COVID-19 Response Fund was created by United Way of Greater Lafayette, The Community Foundation of Greater Lafayette and Greater Lafayette Commerce to bring relief to the area’s most vulnerable individuals and families. LUM is a funded partner agency and continues to serve those experiencing the short-term and long-term impacts of the coronavirus outbreak. 

The monies have been rapidly distributed through the LUM Good Samaritan Program to seniors, children and low-income families to help with recovery, including housing and utility expenses. The fund is also helping with prescription medication assistance, access to childcare for families effected by closures, and services and shelter for people experiencing homelessness who lack the resources to stay safe.