For many in northwest Florida, the anticipation of snow was an opportunity to stay home from school and work, build snowmen and sled down hills, something many never imagined they would do in their own neighborhoods. But for the homeless and those without heat in their homes, the threat of below-freezing temperatures and snowfall was chilling.
“We’ve never experienced anything like this,” said Tom Turman, director of Ferris Hill Baptist Church’s cold weather shelter in Milton. The Jan. 21 extreme cold and more than seven inches of snow across the area kept businesses closed and many in need of a warm place to stay.
The shelter is typically open on extremely cold evenings during the winter months to provide a hot meal and a warm place to sleep for the homeless and heatless in Santa Rosa County.
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EDITOR’S NOTE — This story was written by Brooke Mannion and originally published by the Florida Baptist Convention.
