Frederick Place is a 16-bed emergency, temporary shelter for people currently experiencing homelessness.
Right now, only three beds are available as the shelter serves people of all ages.
The are 18- to 20-year-olds that work low-paying jobs. There are veterans and families with children under four.
A newer demographic NATH and Frederick Place Executive Director Abbey Dall Lukowski is particularly concerned with is the seniors. There are three 79 and older currently living at Frederick Place.
“That population, it's that they're living on social security, and social security funds just aren't covering their overall expenses,” said Dall Lukowski.
Dall Lukowski says a common situation she sees with them and others on social security is they miss one month’s rent because of a single major medical issue or emergency, and it snowballs from there.
The lack of affordable housing is a major issue.
“I think a year ago we may have said that it was because rentals have gone up due to inflation,” said Dall Lukowski. “But right now, it's more about just not enough affordable housing available.”
Another shift Dall Lukowski has seen is how long people are needing to stay at Frederick Place.
The average stay used to be less than a month, now it’s closer to three months.
A more recent issue slowing down the process is the government shutdown.
Dall Lukowski says some services, like getting a new social security card, are taking longer.
“Right now we have two folks staying with us who need an original copy of their social security card,” said Dall Lukowski. “They have the photocopy of it, but they don't have the original, which limits them from moving on to the next step of getting on waitlists for housing authority or getting other applications in and things like that.”
Dall Lukowski stresses homelessness is a very real and present issue in the Northwoods.
Even with local shelters at or near capacity, she encourages people to reach out if they need assistance.
“We are very blessed in our Northwoods to have a kind of a common mindset with one another and our neighbors, that we want to ensure that if people are homeless and they want to change their pathway and become housed, that they have many options available in our community,” said Dall Lukowski.
Dall Lukowski says expenses at Frederick Place have also gone up in recent years, on top of that there’s been a lot of changes to grant funding, with few available for operational expenses.
On top of monetary donations, Frederick Place is in need of socks and undergarments, as long as they’re brand new. Hats and gloves are also needed as we head into the winter months.
