Newsindhs l Independent News Desert Hot Springs l July 14th 2019
Tonight I paid a visit to the night time cooling center in Desert Hot Springs to see how things were going and I was treated to a pleasant conversation with just about everyone who was there.
I was out going to get some supplies when I was thought I would take advantage of this as an opportunity to swing by and meet some new staff there plus ask how they were doing so far.
The answers I got from the staff and visitors to the center were all positive.
I spent the bulk of my conversation time with a gentleman who works at the facility for the Coachella Valley Rescue Mission (CVRM). He wasn’t the manager of the site but outwardly showed a deep and vested interest in the program’s success. So much so that he was there checking into the center on his day off. Most of the conversation we had was off the record and about his journey from life (long ago and temporarily) on the streets to turning that that bad experience into a positive and having most of his life in order now and working for the CVRM.
There were plenty of other staff members and guests there who were willing to have short and candid conversations about their journeys through life that brought them to stay at the cooling center or work for the CVRM.
I was asked for my name and affiliation because the on site night manager said he had to turn it into his boss in the form of a visitor log and I willingly complied as I always will.
There are port-a-potties and hand wash stations located at the exterior of the cooling center offered to and meant for the guests and they even have a portable heater system making hot water for those who are in need of shower.
One of the rules there is that if someone comes into the center for the night, a shower is strongly encouraged before the guest can sleep there til morning.
I had a short talk with one of the guests and he told me of his living arrangements he would find himself in if he did not have the cooling center to sleep in this summer. Let’s just say it has 4 wheels and it’s not an RV. His affect showed his satisfaction for being there.
All in all an hour after the center opened up tonight I counted 4 people who were at the center by 8:30 pm and who were supposedly staying there that night.
The staff member mentioned in a story to me that there are admitted guests to the center late into the evening and night so by the time I left there was plenty of time to go for others to show up looking for a cot.
The cots were all lined up in a row and there were some stand out details about the place that I couldn’t help but take note of.
- The center staff told me that they are having on average about 8-9 people stay there a night. That’s just about exactly how many cots I viewed were set up in the sleeping area.
- There is a female on staff each night to handle needs a woman who is seeking a place to sleep for the night might require.
- The description of the people who were staying there when I visited at around 8 pm on a Sunday night were overwhelmingly middle aged Men.
- The races of the male individuals was a full mix. Black, White, and Hispanic races were all represented in the group.
- Lights come on at 6 AM because the cooling center closes an hour after that.
- Guests to the cooling center can take advantage of clothes cleaning services provided by the CVRM. The mission has resources willing to handle those requests and clean the garments off site. The belongings will be picked up at the center and the clothing would be returned within the next day or 2 for retrieval by the guest cleaned and dried. The Cooling Center is stocked with spare clothing to fill just about anyone’s need shall they want to take the CVRM up on the laundering of their clothing.
- There was fast food being eaten by the guests but it was not clear who provided that.
- It was clean and it was cool inside the center at 8 pm on a day when the outside highs were over 106 degrees at 2 pm.
- Flyers have been getting handed out at known homeless camps in the city by the staff looking to spread the word that the shelter is there and available.
- The main staff member I spoke with told me that the community had stepped up and donated items for the homeless to use while they were there and keep when they leave.
- There were grooming kits laid out for the homeless to take and use upon arrival to the center.
- The Center is open from 7pm to 7 am daily until late next month.
- Free Satellite Television (coming soon)
Everything I saw there seemed to show a lot of forethought and planning on the part of the staff and program designers. There wasn’t much they seemed to have forgotten and their hard work in the beginning and through the program really does show.
I thanked the staff for allowing me to visit the cooling center and I told them I planned on making at least one more visit to the center before it closes down in the later part of summer when temps go back towards our lower average.late August.
The staff all seemed welcoming to the idea and we had a salubrious handshake to seal our meeting of the minds that we shared.
The Nite Time Cooling Center is located at
64565 Pierson Blvd, Desert Hot Springs, CA 92240
And a phone number they have listed is (760) 251-3930
