1 minute read
Helping the Homeless
one shower at a time
by Diane Parnell
The goal for Shower the People was specific: Provide free showers to SLO’s homeless population at an affordable cost. The biggest hurdle in meeting that goal was met in 2018 when a generous grant from Presbyterian Women USA enabled the organization to purchase a three-unit mobile shower.
“We wanted to keep it simple and narrowly focused,” says Gary Petersen, one of the Operations Supervisors for Shower the People, a local interfaith mobile shower program. “Homelessness is a very broad problem. We wanted to work on just one small piece of it.”
Since its inception, Shower the People has done its piece very well. Each guest who uses the mobile shower service is provided a T-shirt, toiletries, underwear and socks. Supplies are purchased directly in bulk from manufacturers via donations from the collective efforts of local churches. Arroyo Grande Community Hospital cleans and replenishes all towels at no cost, and forty volunteers rotate shifts to cover the four days a week of services the mobile unit provides. These combined efforts allow the group to offer 15-minute showers at a cost of only $10 start-to-finish. There is a common belief that all homeless people live on the street but many who utilize these services live in their cars. They have jobs but don’t want their employers to know they are homeless, so they depend on Shower the People, often showing up during their lunch breaks to get their weekly shower.
“The most gratifying thing is to see the change in the individual after the shower,” Petersen says. “They come out smiling, and saying how good it feels to be clean.”
When asked what help they could use from the community, Petersen did not hesitate to answer. “We’ve got our supplies covered. Monetary donations are always welcome, but what we really need are more volunteers.”
Sign up today to help this worthy cause by visiting: www.showerthepeopleslo.org
