Church at the Park is serving hot meals and giving out gifts to Salem’s sheltered people for 12 days starting Christmas Day. (Courtesy/ Church at the Park)
For the 12 days following Christmas, some of Salem’s unsheltered people will get a hot meal and a gift.
Church at the Park is doing a Christmas event this month, handing out food and a different gift, like clothing or camping gear, each day for 250 people.
For almost a decade, Church at the Park has hosted a three-day retreat for unsheltered people called Room at the Inn to provide them a sense of family during the holidays. Guests would typically stay at a cabin and could sing carols, watch Christmas movies and attend a candlelit service on Christmas Eve.
With restrictions aimed at reducing the spread of the coronavirus, pastor DJ Vincent said a 200-person retreat was “Covid impossible.”
But he didn’t want to have to say no to another event. So, he thought, “Let’s lean into a new tradition and a new idea of celebrating for 12 days.”
Starting on Christmas Day, people can receive a hot boxed meal and a daily gift from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. at Church at the Park located on 2410 Turner Rd. S.E.
Church at the Park typically serves the homeless community in east Salem by offering meals and clothing. The site used to serve as a warming shelter, but Covid restrictions made the site impractical for that use this season.
People who wish to donate new items can drop them off at Church at the Park before Christmas. The church still needs donations of boots, coats and pants. More information is available on Church at the Park’s Facebook.
Vincent said the church hands out used clothing every day, but the holidays are the one time of year people get a new item that hasn’t been worn.
“The reality is once a year we want to remind people of their value and say ‘This is a gift. It is new, you’re the first person to have it.’ To remind them at this time of year of their value, but all the items are still incredibly practical,” Vincent said.
He said the focus will be on the 300 or so people living in Cascades Gateway Park adjacent to the church.
Over the weekend, dozens of campers were flooded out of the park after heavy rainfall caused Mill Creek to rise. The ARCHES Project placed 40 households in a motel following the flooding.
“We’re doing tons of social service work, but we are a faith-based organization trying to rally the churches in Salem to both see those who are unsheltered and show them the love and dignity that they deserve,” Vincent said.
Have a tip? Contact reporter Saphara Harrell at 503-549-6250, [email protected].
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