That's why the Monroe County, Pa., Office of Emergency Management (OEM) is discussing starting a "Code Blue" emergency shelter in the county. Named after the hospital code for patients requiring immediate resuscitation, Code Blue shelters are activated on days when winter windchill temperatures drop below 15 degrees Fahrenheit.
OEM Deputy Director Maryellen Keegan met Tuesday with members of the Monroe County Homeless Advisory Board, which recommends to county commissioners ways to help the homeless, to start discussing what types of existing buildings, such as churches, schools or firehouses, can provide Code Blue shelter space.
Some at the meeting pointed out that weather conditions and temperatures can vary in different parts of the county. So, ideally, a Code Blue shelter would be activated in a central part of the county when outdoor temperatures are cold enough, which leaves the question of how to get the homeless (who have no transportation of their own) to the shelter.
Keegan referred the group to the example of the Code Blue shelter system started in Bethlehem by Bethlehem Emergency Sheltering, a faith-based partnership providing a network of care and hospitality for the homeless there.
Keegan referred specifically to Bethlehem Code Blue's strategic goals, which are the following:
* Recruit and train volunteers, based on their skills, experiences and interests, to work with the homeless in Code Blue shelters. Ideal training includes first aid and being able to recognize when a mentally ill or distraught homeless person is suicidal in order to get them the proper help.
* Secure sites and provide coordinators for those sites.
* Implement a systematic fundraising program.
* Build community services connections.
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