Ray of Hope and Macomb County Warming Center team up to help homeless

While most of us are tucked in our beds warm at night, many of Macomb County’s homeless are out in the cold looking for a safe and comfortable place to sleep.

Providing a haven -- along with food, clothes and programs to help them get back on their feet -- is the Ray of Hope Day Center, which recently moved to a new location in Eastpointe.

When the Ray of Hope closes, a church opens its doors as the Macomb County Warming Center. Each year, volunteer churches divvy up the weeks throughout the winter months and provide homeless individuals -- who have been turned away from other shelters – a warm place to stay.

Guests, who are housed from 8 p.m. to 7 a.m. Monday through Sunday, are

given two blankets, a pillow, and space on the floor, along with supper and breakfast. The only condition for admission is good behavior.

Listed below is the Macomb County Warming Center's schedule for the remainder of the year:

* Jan. 21: St. Paul's United Church of Christ, 31654 Mound Road, Warren.

* Jan. 22-28: St. Blase Catholic Community Church, 12151 15 Mile Road, Sterling Heights.

* Jan. 29-Feb. 4: First United Methodist Church, 57 Southbound Gratiot, Mount Clemens.

* Feb. 5-11: St. Clair Shores Assembly of God Church, 24905 Manhattan, St. Clair Shores.

* Feb. 12-18: St. Edmund Catholic Community, 14025 12 Mile Road, Warren.

* Feb. 19-25: St. Martin DePorres Catholic Community, 31515 Hoover, Warren.

* Feb. 26-March 3: Love Life Family Christian Center, 17363 Toepfer Drive, Eastpointe.

* March.4-10: Bethesda Community Church, 22308 Linwood, Eastpointe.

* March 11-17: Christian Trinity Assembly of God Church, 21770 Kelly Road, Eastpointe.

* March 18-24: First Presbyterian Church, 168 Cass Ave., Mount Clemens.

* March 25-31: Renaissance Unity, 11200 11 Mile Road, Warren.

* April 1-7: Church of the Master, 30200 Schoenherr, Warren.

Guests must not arrive at the church before 7:30 p.m. and no one is admitted after 9 p.m. unless working hours prevent earlier arrival (must verify work). For information on the Macomb County Warming Center, call 586-321-0998.

TODAY'S MUSE

Life is mostly froth and bubble,
Two things stand like stone,
Kindness in another's trouble,
Courage in your own ~Adam Lindsay Gordon