Alerts Sign-up
On any given day in downtown Spokane, Washington, it is common to see people sleeping on sidewalks or setting up makeshift shelters. Like many cities across the country, Spokane faces a homelessness crisis, driven by a shortage of affordable housing and available shelters. In 2024, there were about 2,000 homeless individuals in Spokane, marking a 15% decrease from 2023.
The Rev. Bob Feeny of Westminster United Church of Christ has observed this crisis firsthand since moving from New Hampshire to pastor the church in Washington state. “You can’t avoid seeing those who are unhoused as you come to the church,” said Feeny. He realized the need for action beyond the church's previous involvement in overnight emergency shelter programs.
After a year of exploration, Westminster UCC partnered with Jewels Helping Hands, Providence Community Clinic, and Empire Health Foundation to launch a pilot medical respite program. This initiative aims to provide unhoused individuals with a place to recover from injuries or illnesses after hospital discharge.
“After exploring and wondering what we could do, we realized that we didn’t have help the homeless on our own,” said Feeny. The church now uses its spacious rooms to house a medical respite center with 30 beds for referrals from Providence Community Clinic.
“The space we have was created at a time of great surplus and resources,” said Feeny. The center provides care through Jewels Helping Hands staff trained by Providence Community Health Education. “Our church has become a place for those who are well enough to leave the hospital but not well enough to be back on the streets,” he added.
Feeny anticipated some resistance when proposing the medical respite center but found strong support within his congregation despite minor discontent from local groups. The only challenge was relocating a community youth choir that previously occupied the space intended for medical respite.
“These respite centers not only help the unhoused but they are helping hospitals with follow-up appointments being met as there is now place to get in touch with patients for continued care,” noted Feeny.
Westminster UCC continues to engage its congregation with monthly meals provided for guests at the center and hopes to increase involvement over time. Safety protocols are in place for both guests and congregation members.
“We are currently providing a meal a month and hope to do more,” said Feeny. Plans include converting spaces into showers and medical exam rooms while maintaining safety protocols throughout the building.
For Feeny, welcoming "Healing Hearts," as they call their medical respite center, represents an opportunity for churches like Westminster UCC to rethink how they use their properties. “We all must start thinking about what it means to be land stewards and what ‘just’ redevelopment of our properties can look like,” he explained.
“There’s nothing scarier than an empty building that is not being used,” said Feeny, emphasizing that using vacant spaces for community benefit aligns with their mission even if those welcomed never become church members.
