Helping the homeless stay warm
By Chelsey Sellars | January 16, 2021 at 6:08 PM CST – Updated January 16 at 6:08 PM
JACKSON, Miss. (WLBT) – A big blanket of snow flurries covered much of the metro.
The freezing temperatures made Teresa Renkenberger and Mary Ann Kirby worry.
“I passed by a local hospital and at the bus stop, I saw one of our ladies sitting at the bus stop. She looked like she was about to freeze. I circle back around and anyway – she was the reason,” said Rekenberger.
They took their concerns to Facebook, asking their followers to help raise funds to book hotel rooms in Jackson.
Thousands of dollars were collected within hours.
“Initially we had about 45 people that we bought three nights for each but then we saw the weather report that the temperatures were not going to really start to go back up until Thursday. So we circled back around and added additional nights,” said Kirby.
Renkenberger and Kirby have compassion for the homeless. They’re the dedicated minds behind Shower Power.
It’s a truck that helps homeless people have access to a hot shower and other supplies.
“I think people think about it all the time. They just don’t know what to do about it. And so what we’re successful in doing is actually implementing some procedures that will help with the situation and we were able to do that,” said Kirby.
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