Monday marked the first “cold night” in Central Florida since the coronavirus pandemic began, according to Martha Are, CEO of the Homeless Services Network (HSN) of Central Florida. 

Spectrum weather experts predicted low temperatures in the 30s and 40s.

Local shelters banded together to form a “community-wide response” to the cold, according to Meredith Bekemeyer, director of development for the Coalition for the Homeless of Central Florida.

“The plan that's been created is to ensure that nobody looking for shelter will be turned away over the next two nights,” Bekemeyer said. 

The difficulty is how to accommodate the number of people in need with social distancing restrictions in place. Already local shelters have strained to help as many people as possible during the coronavirus pandemic.

Two hotels partnered with the shelters to provide accommodations for people in dire need of housing during the cold Monday and Tuesday nights, Bekemeyer said.

One of those people is Jack Slaughter, who waited in the parking lot of The Salvation Army Orlando Area Command during the organization’s daily food line for those in need.

Slaughter said he was waiting for the bus to take him and others to the hotel around 7 p.m.

“You know, it helps me out for two days, get the mind at ease,” Slaughter said. “Take a hot shower and a bath, you know, use the restroom with privacy.”

Other men encountered near The Salvation Army said they would not be seeking any shelter Monday night.

Capt. Ken Chapman of the Salvation Army Orlando Area Command implored Orlando-area residents to donate blankets and warm clothing — like socks and gloves — if they can.

They can be dropped off downtown at 416 W. Colonial Drive or in Kissimmee at 700 Union St.

St. Cloud Church Opens its Cold Night Shelter

A church in St. Cloud is opening its doors for the first cold night of 2020. 

There are no shelters in Osceola County where the homeless can sleep over, but First United Methodist Church of St. Cloud is allowing folks to stay in for Tuesday night. 

Cathy Thacker, the church pastor, said they’re being extra careful when it comes to social distancing, temperature checks and PPE. 

“With COVID, job losses, unemployment… There’s going to be more in the future. So we just want to make sure everyone is taken cared of and that they get the help that they need,” Thacker explained.  

First United Methodist Church of St. Cloud opened its doors at 6 p.m. Tuesday night. The latest you can check in is 10 p.m. Dinner and breakfast the next morning are included. 

The church usually serves hot meals from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. on Sundays, and passes out "bags of love" on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m.

Molly Duerig is a Report for America corps member who is covering affordable housing for Spectrum News 13. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.