Volunteers Needed for Winter Night Watch Backup Call List
Winter’s frigid temperatures along with snow, ice and wind can make survival a challenge for those who are experiencing homelessness and food insecurity. The Salvation Army’s Winter Night Watch program helps to make these hard winter nights a little more bearable for our city’s most vulnerable population.
Five nights a week between December and the end of February, our mobile food trucks make multiple stops across the city to distribute hot meals and beverages, as well as winter coats, gloves, hats, socks and blankets to anyone in need.
Last year we provided more than 9,000 meals and hundreds of winter outerwear items to those struggling to survive the harsh winter. Depending on the weather, at the height of the winter season as many as 400 individuals per night stop by the food trucks for a hot meal.
Typically, Winter Night Watch volunteer slots fill up fast each season, but this year, we are looking for extra volunteers who might be able to fill in if there is a volunteer cancellation due to illness or an emergency.
Being on the volunteer backup list means you have a pretty flexible schedule, live near our Emergency Disaster Services location (10755 Burt St., Omaha) and/or could be available Monday-Friday evenings without much notice. It does not mean you absolutely have to commit if called upon.
If you have questions or are interested in being placed on the Winter Night Watch volunteer backup call list, please reach out to Erin Sanders, director of volunteer services, at 402-898-5885 or Maria Moreno, director of Winter Night Watch, at 402-680-1859. For more information about Winter Night Watch, please visit the program webpage.