GRANITE CITY – Granite City recently opened its own Overnight Warming Location, and Pastor Phillip Warren shared that the community has been “incredibly supportive” so far. The OWL is looking for volunteers to sustain its operations.
Located at Mt. Zion Church at 2827 Mockingbird Lane in Granite City, the new OWL is the third of its kind in the Riverbend region, joining Alton and Edwardsville in offering a warm place for unhoused community members and people with insufficient heating to stay for the night. Since opening last Monday, Jan. 6, 2025, following a major snowstorm, the Granite City OWL has averaged 30 to 35 people a night.
“There’s all these stories that are happening. But the big thing that we need to really push is we need volunteers,” Warren said. “If you have a lot of people doing little things, it becomes a big thing.”
Like the OWLs in Alton and Edwardsville, the Granite City OWL opens when overnight temperatures are forecasted to drop below 20 degrees Fahrenheit. Guests receive dinner, breakfast and a cot to sleep on.
Warren said the first two weeks of OWL activations have been “incredible,” with “gracious and kind” guests and volunteers who comment on how “rewarding” the experience is. The first few nights were difficult with limited resources and few volunteers, and Warren noted his appreciation for the help of OWL coordinators Peter Hough and Lindsey Apple.
“Last Monday, we opened up and we had a pot of soup my wife made. I didn’t have any cots. I didn’t have anything. No volunteers, nothing,” he remembered. “We had three people stay the first night. We had seven stay the second night, 15 the third night, 34 the fourth night, and we’ve averaged between 30 and 35 every night since. The word got out. The community started to rally.”
In the past two weeks, Granite City and surrounding communities have contributed monetary donations and purchased items from the OWL’s Amazon wish list. Warren is grateful, but he emphasized the need for volunteers if the OWL is to continue operating.
“Honestly, right now, if I’ve got a warm body, I’m using it,” Warren said. “We could not do it without people having a heart for our community and for the hurting.”
You can sign up to volunteer at the Granite City OWL here. There are two volunteer trainings scheduled in the next week, at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Jan. 18 and 6 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 23.
Unlike Alton and Edwardsville, Granite City volunteers have been providing transportation to those who need it. Warren and a few other volunteers pick up unhoused community members at the library and McDonald’s and drive them to Mt. Zion Church for the evening. They then help people return to the daytime warming centers in the morning.
Whether people want to help with overnight monitoring, serving meals, or providing transportation, Warren encourages them to reach out. He thanked Granite City residents, the Granite City Police Department and community leaders for their support. He also expressed his appreciation for the donors and volunteers who make it possible for the OWL to run. He hopes to see more people at the trainings in the coming days.
“We don’t see all the little acts of kindness that are helping, that are going on around us. We don’t hear about it,” he added. “But there’s a lot more that’s going on. We tend to focus on the negative, but there’s a lot of good people in this city. I’m so grateful to be back in my hometown, pastoring my home church and trying to make a difference in my community.”
For more information about the OWLs in Alton, Edwardsville and Granite City, visit the official Overnight Warming Locations page on Facebook.
