We are a coalition of Boston’s religious leaders who care deeply about the closing of the Long Island Shelter. We have come together to advocate for an adequate, stable and dignified short and long term response to this crisis that is consistent with our values as communities of faith.
We bring together 65 religious institutions from across greater Boston with a shared mission: to advocate for the immediate needs of the Long Island refugees, create a unified message to policy makers to work towards long term solutions, and educate and inform the communities we represent about our deep concerns for the homeless in Boston.
We bring together 65 religious institutions from across greater Boston with a shared mission: to advocate for the immediate needs of the Long Island refugees, create a unified message to policy makers to work towards long term solutions, and educate and inform the communities we represent about our deep concerns for the homeless in Boston.
October 2015: The BostonWarm Transition: a continuing call for safe, adequate, and dignified shelter.
One year after the closing of Long Island, needs are still great.
We have:
One year after the closing of Long Island, needs are still great.
- While unhoused men have access to a new facility on Southampton St., women remain housed in the Woods-Mullen shelter, riddled with 136 code violations.
- City-operated addiction recovery beds have been re-sited to Mattapan, but beds operated by private non-profits have yet to be replaced.
- Homelessness in Boston increased 5.6 percent from 2014-2015. Family homelessness alone increased by 25 percent.
We have:
- Welcomed hundreds of unhoused individuals each week at day centers and provided over 100 individuals with safe and secure storage for belongings.
- Led two advocacy campaigns for the restoration of shelter and addiction recovery beds.
- Trained 20 individuals affected by the closing of Long Island to share their story for education and advocacy, bringing first-hand accounts of homelessness to three Boston-area congregations.
- common cathedral (incorporated as Ecclesia Ministries, Inc.) will be the new home for the caring community and hospitality of the BostonWarm day centers.
- Day centers will be open two days per week at Emmanuel Church, complementing existing programming by common cathedral and other programs in the Back Bay / Downtown area.
- Caring staff, a safe and secure area to rest and get warm, and welcome and nourishment for all will remain the norm at the day center.
- Learn more about common cathedral on their website (including volunteer opportunities) and follow them on Facebook.
- The City Mission Society (CMS) will convene BostonWarm congregations for advocacy, expanding our focus from the Long Island crisis towards a goal of ending homelessness in the Boston area. BostonWarm will:
- Sponsor public actions to recognize one-year anniversary of shelter closing.
- Serve as exchange of information within the faith community about policy developments and potential avenues for advocacy.
- Provide opportunities for congregations to learn from those with first-hand experience of homelessness and about policies affecting homelessness and housing issues.
- Learn more about City Mission Society on their website and follow them on Facebook.
January 2015
Dear Friends,
On October 8, 2014, the bridge connecting Long Island to the mainland of Boston was closed due to safety concerns, shutting down the Long Island shelter and displacing over 700 homeless individuals who called Long Island their home.
Although the city has provided temporary beds, shelters have continued to be over capacity, resulting in unsanitary conditions. As temperatures fall, the crisis has become urgent. Dozens of faith leaders have come together knowing that action is necessary to ensure safety for our friends on the street.
The mission of the Boston Religious Leaders for Long Island Refugees is to advocate for an adequate stable, and dignified response for the displaced refugees. We also seek to educate and inform the communities we represent about our deep concerns for the homeless citizens of Boston.
One of the most critical unmet short-term needs that has been identified is for a day shelter. BostonWarm is currently operating a Day Center to provide a warm and comfortable space for people to gather as an alternative to the streets. The day center is at Emmanuel Church on Newbury Street.
Emmanuel Church
15 Newbury St
Monday and Friday, 8:00am-1:00pm
We are trying to change this narrative through prayer, faith, and action. Please join us in this most important effort. CLICK HERE.
November 2014: A Thanksgiving Prayer for Boston
Holy One, lover of us all,
Open our hearts, and the hearts of all in our city -- service providers, business leaders, politicians, clergy and all people of good
will -- to the needs of all your people. In this season of abundance, help us not to forget, or shun, or hide from the realities of all
those who live without homes in our city. Especially this day, help us to respond to the urgent needs of the more than 700 people
displaced by the closure of Long Island. The cold is coming, Lord. And the cold is dangerous, sometimes deadly. In your
mercy, prevent us from allowing others to die as a result of our own hearts' coldness, or weariness, or distraction.
Dear Lord, you know the details: the women who now have no place to go but the woods at night; the 220 men sleeping packed
onto a single basket ball court; those who lost beds in detox and recovery programs and now feel hopeless and lost. Stir up our
hearts with the power of your love, embolden us with your mercy and, if need be, so enrage us with the reality of our brothers'
and sisters' predicament that we start now to act together, as one. Creator of the universe, grant us the vision to see the urgency of
this situation – to see that the dying has already begun without waiting for the headlines to tell us.
Be with us. Stay with us. And do not let us go until what needs to be done is done.
Amen.
Dear Friends,
On October 8, 2014, the bridge connecting Long Island to the mainland of Boston was closed due to safety concerns, shutting down the Long Island shelter and displacing over 700 homeless individuals who called Long Island their home.
Although the city has provided temporary beds, shelters have continued to be over capacity, resulting in unsanitary conditions. As temperatures fall, the crisis has become urgent. Dozens of faith leaders have come together knowing that action is necessary to ensure safety for our friends on the street.
The mission of the Boston Religious Leaders for Long Island Refugees is to advocate for an adequate stable, and dignified response for the displaced refugees. We also seek to educate and inform the communities we represent about our deep concerns for the homeless citizens of Boston.
One of the most critical unmet short-term needs that has been identified is for a day shelter. BostonWarm is currently operating a Day Center to provide a warm and comfortable space for people to gather as an alternative to the streets. The day center is at Emmanuel Church on Newbury Street.
Emmanuel Church
15 Newbury St
Monday and Friday, 8:00am-1:00pm
We are trying to change this narrative through prayer, faith, and action. Please join us in this most important effort. CLICK HERE.
November 2014: A Thanksgiving Prayer for Boston
Holy One, lover of us all,
Open our hearts, and the hearts of all in our city -- service providers, business leaders, politicians, clergy and all people of good
will -- to the needs of all your people. In this season of abundance, help us not to forget, or shun, or hide from the realities of all
those who live without homes in our city. Especially this day, help us to respond to the urgent needs of the more than 700 people
displaced by the closure of Long Island. The cold is coming, Lord. And the cold is dangerous, sometimes deadly. In your
mercy, prevent us from allowing others to die as a result of our own hearts' coldness, or weariness, or distraction.
Dear Lord, you know the details: the women who now have no place to go but the woods at night; the 220 men sleeping packed
onto a single basket ball court; those who lost beds in detox and recovery programs and now feel hopeless and lost. Stir up our
hearts with the power of your love, embolden us with your mercy and, if need be, so enrage us with the reality of our brothers'
and sisters' predicament that we start now to act together, as one. Creator of the universe, grant us the vision to see the urgency of
this situation – to see that the dying has already begun without waiting for the headlines to tell us.
Be with us. Stay with us. And do not let us go until what needs to be done is done.
Amen.
