They gathered outside Sojourner House homeless shelter in the darkness on this frigid mid-December night, hoping for a respite from their subzero surroundings.

More than 50 unhoused residents pressed together as more continued to arrive. Most were wrapped in layer upon layer of protective winter clothing. One group sat huddled in a corner near the shelter’s entrance, seeking relief from the cold under multiple blankets. 

But all that winter clothing wasn’t enough to stave off the arctic air that breached those protective measures, relentlessly reaching their bodies. The crowd grew restless as they waited for warmth amid such challenging conditions. Tempers flared amid discussions that some might be turned away because the shelter would be beyond capacity. 

“Being homeless is bad enough,” one woman seeking shelter told me. “But not having a place to escape the weather when it’s this cold? It’s damn hard to have hope when that’s what you face.”

Nearby, another unhoused woman told me she and her boyfriend were spending the winter in a tent. She said she didn’t feel comfortable spending the night in the shelter’s close confines. 

“This is what we do,” she said resolutely when I asked if there was anyone the couple could spend the night with to avoid life-threatening conditions. “We don’t have other options that work for us.”

Despite work to address homelessness for the past decade, the number of unhoused people in Eau Claire today is significantly higher than when I first ventured out on the streets with them. Adding to challenges is the recent announcement that Catholic Charities, which operates Sojourner House, faces a $450,000 deficit to operate the structure. It could be closed for six months beginning May 1.

We must work smarter to better address homelessness. We must do more. We must work better together.

•••

Eleven years earlier, on another night shortly before Christmas 2013, a similar gathering of unhoused people gathered in front of Sojourner House seeking shelter from the bitter cold. I left work that evening at the end of my day at the Leader-Telegram newspaper and walked a few blocks to get a firsthand look at homelessness in Eau Claire. 

I found people from a variety of backgrounds, from various places, who had become homeless because of different circumstances. However, they shared one aspect in common. They were without a home. 

I spent that winter and spring with this city’s unhoused residents, learning what it meant to be homeless during a harsh Eau Claire winter. I learned how people can be incredibly resilient, how they can survive moment to moment, how they can retain hope amid seemingly insurmountable odds. I learned how that hope can be dashed by missed appointments or a drug or alcohol relapse, by health problems and no access to medications, by a mental health collapse, by exposure to weather. I learned to see homeless people I considered friends struggle, and in a couple cases, die.

•••

Unhoused people huddle together under blankets to ward off the subzero temperature while waiting to get into the Sojourner House homeless shelter on Dec. 12, 2024. The number of unhoused people in the Chippewa Valley has risen in recent years even as efforts to assist them have grown. (Photo by Julian Emerson)

I wrote a series of stories in the Leader-Telegram about unhoused residents’ experiences that winter 11 years ago. So much has happened since then to try to address homelessness in our city. Expanded and new services. Government involvement. Increased giving by churches and others. More media attention. Two major initiatives are currently underway: A day resource center that would be owned by Western Dairyland and operated by Hope Gospel Mission, and a Housing First program modeled after success in Milwaukee using that model.

Inspired by the unhoused residents I have known, I tried to do my part. I continued to write about homelessness to raise awareness and in some cases money. I performed with musicians to do the same. I became a member of various groups that work to address homelessness and affordable housing. I continue to spend time with unhoused residents on the street. 

However, as I was reminded during my visits to Sojourner House this past winter, our collective efforts have not been enough. Despite work to address homelessness for the past decade, the number of unhoused people in Eau Claire today is significantly higher than when I first ventured out on the streets with them. Adding to challenges is the recent announcement that Catholic Charities, which operates Sojourner House, faces a $450,000 deficit to operate the structure. It could be closed for six months beginning May 1.

That is only the most recent homeless-related obstacle and is evidence that as a community, we must work smarter to better address homelessness. We must do more. We must work better together.

About the author: Julian Emerson is a longtime journalist who has reported on homelessness in Eau Claire and elsewhere. He is a member of numerous boards and committees that work on housing-related issues. He currently is the grants and housing program manager for the city of Altoona. If you have professional or personal experience with homelessness and would like to submit a column to be considered as part of this series, please email editorial@volumeone.org.