Brainard officially has a warm refuge, just to relieve the heavy snow that dumped in the Lake District over the weekend.

Jana Shogren, Executive Director of Bridges of Hope, said in a telephone interview on Sunday, December 12: "We are very happy to be able to provide this service, but at the same time you are also sad that you need this kind of support." 5.

The Brainerd-based non-profit Bridge of Hope has worked with Crow Wing County, regional churches, and other local organizations to open a shelter in southern Brainerd. After petitioning the city government to update its zoning guidelines to allow shelters, apply for permits, train staff and update buildings, the organizers opened the doors of the shelter on Friday. The first guest didn’t come until Saturday night, but Shogren said he was grateful for the stay here, and left with a newly bought coat and a bag of food for breakfast and lunch on Sunday morning, thanks to shared bread Soup Kitchen and other community donors.

"We really appreciate the community," Shogren said. "We really got overwhelmingly active support, which is really great."

The director of the shelter, Ann Hunnicutt, stated that the operations during the first weekend went well.

"I can't ask for anything better," she said. "...Our guests are very respectful and follow the rules. It's going very smoothly."

Hunnicutt hopes to advertise the shelter more this week, as the admission permit was not received until 4pm on Friday.

She said: “The difficulty is that many professional institutions have already left by that time,” and pointed out that she sent emails to medical institutions, law enforcement agencies and other organizations, and hoped that once they started working on Monday, these places would be able to communicate with those who can. People who benefit from shelters get in touch.

The initial goal earlier this year was for the shelter to start operating in the first half of 2022 or—at the earliest—in mid-December. Shogren and Hunnicutt attributed the earlier-than-expected opening to the entire community.

"We have people working on holidays and weekends," Hunnicutt said. "Really, since we got the license, we have done a lot of work in a short period of time. It just shows how hard the community works."

Many people are exhausted by the efforts of this project-including Hunnicut herself-but she said she will redouble her efforts to open the door as soon as possible.

The shelter is open every day from 8pm to 8am, can accommodate 20 adults, and there is no limit to how many nights a person can stay. Well-trained staff will always be on site during business hours, and customers will have space to store any items they bring. Enter the refuge at 1926 S. Seventh St. Welcome to walk until 11 o'clock every night.

"We may not be everyone's first choice, but in fact, there is a choice, where there is a place to sleep, and it feels really good," Shogren said.

Although donations are popular, Shogren asks people to wait a week or two so that shelter staff can find out what the highest needs are and request these items accordingly. Follow the Bridges of Hope Facebook page for demand updates, and visit bridgesofhopemn.org/warmingshelter to learn more about the shelter.