Homelessness, hunger grow with the cold

LACONIA — As temperatures start to dip at this time of year, Capt. Scott McNeil begins to see more hungry and cold people at his Salvation Army soup kitchen and homeless shelter.

He said a little prayer at noon Wednesday, thanking God for the food and a warm place to eat it.

Volunteers Rod Dyer, a former Laconia mayor, and Willis Sloat, both attorneys at Wescott Law, then served macaroni and cheese with dinner rolls. The law firm bought and cooked the food and has been helping the soup kitchen for two years. 

“People come in here when it gets colder,” McNeil said. “The shelter is always full, but as it gets colder, people will just come and gravitate. They need something to eat.”

Sitting at one table were Crystal Kelly, Mark Boynton and Lynn Nalette.

Kelly lives nearby but remembers a couple of years ago when she was homeless with a young child.

“He slept out in the cold with me some nights in the car,” she said. “We had to find shelters to go to. We were bouncing around.”

She said an experience like that will make a person appreciate a warm meal on a cold day.

“We live next door,” Nalette said. “It’s a nice place to come to see people we haven’t seen for a while and just have a nice hot meal.”

Boynton said he has a job at a local restaurant but still likes to come here for lunch when he can.

“It is very helpful,” he said. “It’s a very warm meal.”

The shelter has 34 beds, including a wing that can accommodate four families. The soup kitchen at 177 Union Avenue serves lunch Tuesday through Saturday every week and the last Sunday of every month.

McNeil said the Salvation Army’s goal is to transform lives.

The low unemployment rate means jobs are easier to come by. McNeil has contacts with landlords.

“Since January, we have put 75 individuals into permanent housing that is not subsidized,” he said. “We want people to be healthy and socially stable.”

Just down the road, at 200 Court St., is Belknap House, a 19-bed cold-weather homeless shelter that operates as a hostel in warm weather months to raise money for shelter operations.

Colleen Garrity, president of Belknap House, said it closed for a deep cleaning and re-opened on Oct. 15.

“We had one family come in the very first day and have had two additional families since then,” she said.

Families get referred to the shetler by town and city welfare departments in Belknap County.

There are two full kitchens for people to cook their own food.

“When they come in they receive a canvas bag with pasta, sauce, rice, canned tuna, chicken, veggies, legumes,” she said. “If they need something else, we’ll refer them to area food pantries.”

There’s a playroom with toys. Children are bused to school.

Garrity said the goal is to work with people to find them jobs and permanent housing. Some of these families get through the summer without a roof.

“Some will camp through the summer, they’ll pitch a tent, or they’ll couch surf,” she said. “This is a safe place for people and their kids and that’s the important thing. They are out of the cold. There is food to eat.”

Laconia Police Chief Matt Canfield said officers try to look out for the homeless in freezing weather.

"There was a guy who was living outside in freezing weather and an officer would bring him a cup of coffee or hot chocolate and just check on him," Canfield said.

The man didn't seem to want help in getting off the street.

Many homeless people have addiction or mental health problems that keep them from seeking shelter and also lack a family support system. 

The New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services does a yearly survey to gauge homelessness. Its 2018 “Point-in-time Count,” conducted in January, found 126 people without permanent housing in Belknap County.

For people who are not homeless but are having trouble paying winter heating bills, there is the New Hampshire Electrical Assistance Program or the Community Action Program. Also, utilities work with customers to restructure bill payments and take other steps to avoid turning off power during cold weather months.

How to get help:

Housing, contact the local town or city welfare officer. In Laconia, the welfare office is located in City Hall and the number to call is 603-527-1267.

Food, the Salvation Army, 177 Union Ave., 603-524-1834; St. Vincent de Paul, 1269 Union Ave., 603-528-5683, or call 2-1-1.

Assistance with paying electric or fuel bills, the Community Action Program of Belknap-Merrimack counties, 603-225-3295.

Referrals for services for mental health or drug dependency, call 2-1-1.