Nick lies helpless on the ground shivering in the cold. His feet are slowly freezing and the frostbite is making its way up his body. Nick has kids, they’re huddled in the corner covered in the small pieces of cloth he found near the dumpster; his wife left him and from a mile away you can hear their stomachs growling from a great lack of food. Of course Nick is one of the many homeless people in the world, and without a homeless shelter tonight he and his daughters and himself would be dead! Homeless shelters do help the homeless because the volunteers really work hard to give the homeless a place to get warm, have hot food, and feel comforted. Also, because the shelter provides a service that would help the homeless person if they were sick and dying. Finally, it is easy access to a free house, with no cost.

One, homeless shelters do help people because the volunteers really work hard to give the homeless a place to get warm, have hot food, and feel comforted. “If a person lives in a city of any size, there is at least one homeless shelter that helps homeless people with meals, beds, and other services (bygpub.com1997). If kids get a chance to volunteer at a homeless shelter it will not only give them something to do but help them learn how to care for others. “Homeless shelters sometimes provide services such as soup kitchen, job seeking, skills training, job placement, support groups, and substance abuse training” (wikipedia.com2006). So, if the homeless come to a shelter out of shape and emotionally stressed then the volunteers can provide people for them to talk to and raise money by looking for a job.

Next, because in most cases if people don’t go to a shelter they could freeze to death, starve, and get very ill. Also, because of the bad weather at night some people could not survive the temperatures and face death without a shelter to care for them. Also, because of the cold people could suffer, by getting a very bad cold, Pneumonia, and not being able to afford medication or help to cure them. Without homeless shelters to help the sick homeless others passing by have a greater chance of getting sick. For example, say a person is walking by on the street and he or she happens to walk by a homeless person and all kinds of their germs are floating around in the air!

Lastly, it is easy access to a free of charge house, with no cost. Because “homeless shelters are usually operated by a nonprofit agency, or at an associated church” (wikipedia.com2006). This means that because homeless shelters are usually put on by churches a nonprofit agency, that the people going there do not have to pay! Also, “Many people get at least part of their funding from local government entities” (wikipedi.com2006) meaning that because the government also supports them then there is yet again no cost. Distributing donated supplies include food, paper, and other personal supplies.” (homelessfamilies.org.

Surprisingly there are people who do not believe in homeless shelters or do not like the idea of getting money from a funding government or church. For example in March 1995 home providers took a survey reflecting on how things were going when the government checked on them. There are many people who in fact had good results but some bad; 127 ministers took the survey and 31% have taken some government funding. Also that means 69% have not taken government funding. Some of the bad results from people sounded like this, “As soon as families discovered that the government supported us, they were not satisfied with the content of our food baskets. After first allocation, we withdrew, and returned the money,” said one of the survey takers (www.agrm.org/2007). These are just a few quotes from poor care takers that had to shut down just because of small flaws in their shelter, or just because they included religion in some part of their shelter. These people are wrong because even though most shelters are paid for by churches, it should not matter. What the shelters are doing is a very good thing. They’re saving people’s lives and giving them hope.

So, now Nick and his kids are finally warm. Good news, Nick got his job back! The volunteers found him a nice home to live in and he doesn’t have to look at the hungry faces of his children every night. There is more than just a rag between him and the cold ground. If it weren’t for the homeless shelter Nick and his kids would be dead! Some people may think that because of religious supporters that it is just an opinion. Without homeless shelters people would struggle. Homeless shelters do help the homeless because the volunteers really work hard to give the homeless a place to get warm, have hot food, and feel comforted. Also, because the shelter provides a service that would help the homeless person if they were sick and dying. And, it is easy access to a free house, with no cost.