CHELAN - Chelan Valley Hope asked the Chelan High School shop class to build an outdoor shelter for the unhoused, and they delivered.
“I'm so proud of the students who agreed to take on this huge project,” CVH Executive Director Tamra Hively said.
Chelan Valley Hope is a nonprofit organization dedicated to assisting individuals and families in need.
The outdoor shelter is only big enough for one person and a pet. But it can be a lifesaving option for the unhoused when the temperature turns deadly cold. It is insulated and has emergency sleeping bags inside.
“Chelan has approximately 80 people that are unhoused or live in substandard housing, such as their cars, tents, broken down RV's that have no running water or heat,” Hively said.
Hively looked at many prototypes of pod shelters but could not find any the organization could buy outright. A friend recommended she reach out to Jason Sanderson, the Career and Technical Education teacher at CHS.
“He said he would take on the project and I was really surprised,” she said.
Hively gave Sanderson her specifications for the project and he and about 15 students made it a reality.
“I had several things that it had to have like, insulation, material that could be sanitized, small, moveable, waterproof and safe,” she said.
“I'm so pleased with the outcome,” she said. “We will paint it to match the new paint on our building, and make sure it is aesthetically pleasing - even though it won't be seen from the street.”
If the shelter works well CVH will ask for another one. Hively hopes that other places with cold weather will use the shelter as a model.
“I am so happy that Chelan has been supportive of taking care of its residents and making sure everyone has a place to sleep and enough food to eat,” Hively said. “This is a very giving community that refuses to let people suffer. I am in awe of Mr. Sanderson and the students that decided to save lives by making this project possible.”
Around 15 students worked on building the shelter along with their other projects so it took about a month to build, Sanderson said.
Building a shelter for an unhoused person was a first for the class and Sanderson. Usually they build sheds, tiny houses and other similar projects.
“The students all felt good about building a shelter for someone who might be sleeping out in the cold, " Sanderson said. “It's not nearly as comfortable as a house but it will be warm and dry. The students also liked going inside and trying it out.”
“I am hoping they are learning construction skills from building it as that is what I am teaching them,” he said. “But I think it also teaches them and me compassion which is also important.”
The shelter will sit outside CVH’s new addition and if someone needs a place to warm up, they can use it.
In the summer months it will be locked and used for storage.
“Its primary purpose is to save the life of an unhoused person during severe weather conditions,” Hively said.
I also want to make sure you know about our overnight warming station. It isn't a shelter, but it does have a place to warm up, sleep, and have a warm meal. It is important that it is not called a shelter, as that is something open daily and takes more permits, etc. We only open it when the temps are very low. The first three nights were just this last Saturday, Sunday, and Monday. We only had a few people show.
We will open again, but it is costly so we can only do it when it's so cold someone's life is in danger. I'm attaching the guidebook that lists our community team and the policies. We also have some great volunteers willing to give their time and energy. We always try to help people sign up for housing, although there is a long waitlist.
These may be separate stories, or combined, but I wanted you to know what we are doing to try and keep people safe from the elements.
Quinn Propst: 509-731-3590 or quinn@ward.media.
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