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The following press release went out to the community today:
POTTSTOWN, PA., Nov. 27, 2024 – Several organizations have joined together to provide shelter for Pottstown’s homeless population this winter to those in need ahead of the coldest months of the year.
Since the pandemic, Pottstown's homeless and unsheltered population has increased significantly. About 110 people are facing a winter exposed to the elements in the woods along the railroad tracks, surrounded by rats and trash, and facing freezing weather. The needs of this population exceed the space available in Pottstown's church-based overnight warming centers. While Pottstown Beacon of Hope is building a permanent shelter, it will not be completed until 2025.
Volunteers cleaned up an abandoned encampment in Pottstown, off College Drive.
Opportunity House, a Reading-based homeless services provider, is coordinating the efforts of multiple entities to provide shelter over the course of the winter. With the help of Senator Tracy Pennycuick (S-24th) and Representative Joe Ciresi (D-146), this collaborative approach was made possible by support from local private funders, as well as by Norfolk Southern Corporation. This provides shelter and services on a short-term basis through Spring 2025, after which the group hopes to find additional resources to extend services until the Beacon of Hope Shelter is completed.
"Pottstown is today where Reading was years ago in terms of the need outstripping the available resources," said Modesto Fiume, Executive Director of Opportunity House. "We are happy to lend some support to get through the winter and are happy to work with the Borough, Montgomery County, Norfolk Southern, The Deviators, the Pottstown Cluster of Religious Communities, and Pottstown's other service providers in hopes of not just getting people out of the woods but headed toward health and productive lives.”
“Across our 22-state network, we’re invested in helping our communities thrive, and we know the profound impact homelessness can have on individuals affected,” said Norfolk Southern Regional Executive Director for State Relations Jeremy Shoemaker. “In the past, in the absence of an alternative shelter, many of Pottstown’s homeless individuals have set up temporary encampments on property owned by the rail company, creating a potentially dangerous situation for those living along and near active tracks. We’re proud to be a part of the solution here in Pottstown, and we’re grateful to all our partners for making this effort a reality.”
Opportunity House and this collaboration are working with Montgomery County on a longer-term plan.
Disclosure: Mike Hays, director of Montco 30% Project, works in Rep. Ciresi's office.