Room at the Inn

Sponsored by the Sisters of Divine Providence, Room at the Inn provides emergency shelter and a stabilizing support system to women and families in need in St. Louis County, using a collaborative, interfaith effort of congregations and organizations throughout the St. Louis Region.

Since 1993, Room at the Inn has provided 24-hour emergency shelter for up to 20 people dealing with the complex issues of homelessness.   The program operates 365 days a year and collaborates with more than 60 interfaith organizations, including Blessed Teresa of Calcutta. 

Room at the Inn follows a unique model for homeless shelters.  The Sisters of Divine Providence operate a single day site which is located and in Bridgeton, Missouri and they partner with over 60 churches to offer overnight shelter .   At the shelter during the day, clients work to identify and correct the causes of their homelessness and develop the knowledge and skills needed to become self-reliant and prevent future episodes of homelessness.

Blessed Teresa hosts Room at the Inn clients on the fourth Sunday and Monday of each month.  In the evenings, clients are welcomed at with shared meals, fellowship and a safe place to sleep.  Volunteers drive to the day site, pick up their guests and bring them to their church, where the guests are fed dinner. Other volunteers spend the night at the church with the guests. After breakfast, guests are returned to the day site.

Volunteers are needed for any of the various We need volunteers to drive our guests to and from the shelter, cook for dinner and breakfast, set up crew for the mattresses, hospitality hosts and hostesses and innkeepers to spend the night.

Drivers: Pick up guests at day site in Bridgeton by 5:30 p.m. and bring them to Blessed Teresa. Return guests by Friday at 7:00 a.m.
Hosts: Arrive at Blessed Teresa by 5:30 p.m. Sunday or Monday, eat dinner and socialize with guests.
Innkeepers: Arrive at Blessed Teresa by 9:00 p.m. Sunday or Monday to spend the night with our guests.  Wake guests and help prepare and serve breakfast in the morning.  Guests leave Blessed Teresa at 6:30 a.m.
Cooks: Prepare and serve food by 6:00 p.m. Sunday or Monday, eat with our guests and hosts, and clean up.
___________________________________________________________
“For I was hungry and you gave me food,
I was thirsty and you gave me drink,
a stranger and you welcomed me...
Amen, I say to you, whatever you did
for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.”

(Matthew 25:35-41)