As winter returns to Dallas, outreach group Our Calling offers essential refuge, highlighting the critical need for warmth and long-term solutions<\/p>\n
DALLAS \u2014 As holiday music played and skaters circled an outdoor ice rink in Downtown Dallas, the colder weather finally matched the season\u2019s mood.<\/p>\n
Across town, the same Christmas music drifted through the parking lot of Our Calling, a homeless outreach organization. There, Colleen Evon sat under a tree, listening.<\/p>\n
\u201cMemories,\u201d she said. \u201cAll those past Christmases. Where you were with your friends or family.\u201d<\/p>\n
Evon has been homeless for nearly two years. This week, she was recovering from an attack at a homeless camp, where she said she was struck in the head – an injury requiring several stitches in her forehead. With temperatures dropping, her concern was less about the holidays and more about staying warm.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s difficult,\u201d she said. \u201cVery difficult.\u201d<\/p>\n
As cold weather settles into North Texas, outreach groups say the risks for people living outside increase quickly. Exposure to low temperatures can be dangerous, especially for those already dealing with injuries or illness.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople experiencing homelessness are people,\u201d said Juliana Williams, chief advancement officer at Our Calling. \u201cThey\u2019re neighbors, just like you and me.\u201d<\/p>\n
On Monday night, Our Calling opened its doors to serve as a temporary cold-weather refuge. The organization, which normally operates as a daytime resource center rather than a shelter, planned to welcome at least 300 people. Volunteers offered dinner, breakfast the next morning and a warm place to sleep.<\/p>\n
Williams said the goal goes beyond one night indoors.<\/p>\n
\u201cUltimately, we want to make sure people are cared for with dignity,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd long term, that they have options to get off the street.\u201d<\/p>\n
She added that even those who choose not to come inside immediately may remember the option later if colder weather lasts longer.<\/p>\n
“Our hope is that even if people don’t come inside tonight, that at least they hear about it and the next time it gets cold maybe for longer, they come inside,”\u00a0 Williams said.<\/p>\n
Evon\u2019s path to homelessness, like many others, is complicated. She said she is divorced, was evicted and has family members who refuse to help. For now, the support she relies on comes from outreach groups and volunteers.<\/p>\n
\u201cPlaces like this,\u201d she said. \u201cThe kindness of strangers.\u201d<\/p>\n
Advocates estimate that about 10,000 people in Dallas experience homelessness. As winter conditions arrive, many depend on emergency shelters, warming centers and volunteer efforts to survive nights like this one.<\/p>\n
For Evon, the hope is simple.<\/p>\n
\u201cI hope so,\u201d she said. \u201cI really hope so.\u201d<\/p>\n