
With the cold months upon us, many are looking to stay indoors to ward off the frigid weather. The Emergency Shelter of Northern Kentucky (ESNKY) further opens their doors based on a declared state of emergency by Governor Andy Beshear, and in agreement with Kenton County, activating White Flag Alerts and allowing warming centers and shelters to go beyond their occupancy.
What is a White Flag Alert?
The White Flag Alert is designed to provide shelter and warming/cooling centers to vulnerable populations. People are welcome to visit the participating shelters for a safe place to avoid the elements.
The White Flag Alert System is not used in the Northern Kentucky area; ESNKY decided to implement the term when looking at other cities and counties, like Louisville and Lexington.
Director of Emergency Shelter of Northern Kentucky Kim Webb explained ESNKY’s usage of “White Flag Alerts.”
“It is a system in place that acknowledges that the weather is going to be so severe that they consider White Flag, and they allow local shelters to go beyond their occupancy,” Webb said.
Webb explained that when the governor declares a state of emergency, ESNKY operations turn to White Flag. The shelter expands, operating as a 24-hour warming center. During the daytime, any adult can enter off the street until the shelter reaches capacity, and they have access to showers and laundry. Overnight warming allows individuals to stay in their lobby through the night.
Webb is grateful for the extra support the Northern Kentucky shelter gets to provide their guests during the hazardous conditions, stating that the White Flag terminology “was really born on this idea to communicate that the weather was going to be bad for our guests and for our community, that we were going to be going above and beyond.”
To Webb, she has the most rewarding job: being able to help a community in crisis, providing aid and community to ESNKY’s guests, through not only staff.
“I have the privilege to be part of a community that very much wants to care. And I just get to connect the two. Every day, we’re reminded about the fact that when we’re in this model, we get to shelter more people,” the director said.
Webb said that White Flag status allows her staff a sense of relief, too, explaining that being on the other side of a phone call continuously saying there’s no bed for guests can be emotionally draining. Entering the White Flag system which allows them to say yes is such a sense of relief.
“They get so excited about it, to be able to look at someone and say, ‘Yeah, come on in. We’re happy to have you. I mean, we’re happy to help you.’ It’s huge. It’s huge for them. It keeps them going,” Webb said.
Webb thinks it’s important to let everyone know that giving a bed to someone for a couple of weeks is a “game changer” for them, noting that it allows for an opportunity to repair relationships, find a new job and get help or treatments.
ESNKY works to provide community for its guests. Webb explains that during White Flag Alerts, the guests help constantly, pitching in, helping with laundry, cleaning bathrooms, assisting with donations, cleaning up and all kinds of things.
“It’s just another level, an example of the sense of community that they have, the sense of gratefulness they have and it’s really important,.” Webb said.
Webb mentioned things she would like everyone to know.
“That these are neighbors that live among us. These are human beings. They’re somebody’s father, son, mom or grandmother. We see it all. We see it all. I would also want people to know that across the nation, two thirds of the population experiencing homelessness is a single adult,” she said.
She urged that emergency shelters are not the long term destination for many people.
“We see who comes in here, people will figure this out, and we need to give them the time and the resources to do that,” Webb said.
“We want to make sure people get the word out,” Webb said, referring to the White Flag Alert system used at ESNKY. “If we can get more folks to come into the shelter, we certainly would want that to happen.”