Emergency Shelter Closes

After serving nearly 200 residents during the past four days, the Grafton emergency shelter closed tonight at 6 p.m. The shelter was located at the .

A total of 181 residents visited the shelter from Sunday morning through this evening. Visitors ranged in age from 2 weeks to older than 90, shelter director Clare Garabedian reports.

The Community Emergency Response Team/Medical Reserve Corps volunteers put in nearly 424 hours to keep the shelter open around the clock.

They did every thing from setting up the shelter to breaking it down, Garabedian reports. They also prepared breakfast, lunch, and dinner for all, including the staff. The staff spent as much time as possible with the visitors to be sure they were comfortable, had enough to eat and had someone to talk to.

Garabedian reports that the hearty thanks from visitors were very heart-warming.

Between 30 and 40 people a day came in to charge their cell phones and other electronics. One person came in to charge the battery on his wheelchair, Garabedian said.

While they were there they would warm up, have lunch, dinner, and maybe a cup of coffee or two. Then there were those who came in with an assortment of buckets to get water to flush their toilets. There are quite a number of Grafton residents that have their own wells.

The shelter staff even set up an area where female visitors could blow-dry and/or curl their hair.

All the volunteers worked very hard and some put in long hours to make our shelter as comfortable as possible, Garabedian said. Even though she had no way to contact most of the volunteers, they just showed up at the shelter to volunteer their time and made sure all shifts were covered.

“I am extremely pleased at their dedication to helping those in need,’’ she said.