WHO News
WHO@SALC January Update: Shelter Expansion & WHO Benefit Concert Returns
Dear WHO@SALC Friends!
What an amazing outpouring of love and support for our WHO@SALC guests already in this 23rd season. Because of your incredible generosity, we are able to hire a third case manager to help with family intake, assessments, and resource support. What this means is that, beginning this month, January, we will open all 50 shelter beds for the remainder of this season, through March 31. Thank you so much for making this happen.
We aren't done yet, though. We are still looking to have more paid staff cover our overnight needs, as that remains the hardest volunteer shift to fill. So, thank you for continuing your support. You are a blessing!
Peace and Joy,
Pastor Cindy
Help Us Hire Overnight Staff: While our volunteer community is incredible, overnight shifts remain our greatest staffing challenge. Professional overnight staff ensure consistent, compassionate care when our guests need it most. Your support helps us provide trained staff presence overnight, keeping our shelter running safely and smoothly through every season.
Light of Peace: The WHO@SALC Benefit Concert Returns! January 18, 2026
We're thrilled to announce that after a several-year hiatus, our beloved benefit concert tradition is back! Join us on January 18, 2026, at 2 pm at St. Andrew Lutheran Church (5607 NE Gher Road, Vancouver, WA 98662) for an afternoon of beautiful music and community as the Winds and Strings & Chancel Choir, joined by special guests the Fort Vancouver Pipers, perform to support the Winter Hospitality Overflow shelter at St. Andrew.
Our musicians are ready to return and can't wait to share this day with you! Enjoy uplifting seasonal music, connect with your neighbors over tasty snacks, and support WHO@SALC's 23rd season of providing warm beds, hot meals, and compassionate care for our unhoused neighbors during the coldest months of the year.
All proceeds benefit WHO@SALC.
Come for the music. Stay for the mission. All are welcome!
Real Impact,
Real Lives Changed
Join our community of volunteers serving neighbors experiencing homelessness in Vancouver, WA. The Winter Hospitality Overflow brings together interfaith teams from across Clark County to provide meals, overnight support, and compassionate care at our emergency shelter.
Pictured below, scenes from the Winter Hospitality Overflow shelter at St. Andrew Lutheran Church in Vancouver, WA.
By the Numbers: November 1 - December 31
Shelter Capacity & Guests
Between 30 and 47 guests are welcomed each night.
44 adults
25 children, ages 6 weeks to 15 years old.
35 households served.
388 bus tickets helped adults get to and from work.
Progress Toward Stability
4 single women moved to the WHAT program for year-round support and greater stability on their path to permanent housing.
A family of six people moved to a family shelter.
A single person developed a permanent plan to stay with family.
Serving Our Community
2 veterans
30 individuals self-reporting with at least 1 disability.
Families, single women, and mothers with children.
A Thanksgiving Filled to Overflowing
It was such a gift to keep the shelter open all day on Thanksgiving and to provide our guests with a delicious Thanksgiving dinner with all the fixings. The guests were so appreciative of the variety, quality, quantity, and deliciousness of all of the food. We started serving at 11:30 am, and everyone present in the shelter had their fill. All of the leftovers were kept hot and cold as needed for dinner. By about 1 pm, all of the families had left the shelter because the weather was so nice. I think they went to walk off the big meal they had just enjoyed. They really appreciated being able to leave the shelter and come back whenever they wanted.
It is such a blessing to serve our neighbors and make them happy!!!
Blessings,
Mr. Ed
From Right to left, the folks are me (Ed Brands), Tom Haralson, Mike Shaw, and Cindy Shaw, and a WHO guest
Volunteer Spotlight!
The Overnight Eleven: Night Owls Who Answered the Call
This fall, we shared a challenge with our WHO community: with funding reduced and overnight staffing at risk, we needed volunteers willing to step into the quiet, vital hours between 10:30 PM and 6:30 AM—when our guests sleep, when the shelter settles, and when consistency matters most.
We asked for night owls. For people willing to be trained, to be present, to hold the space while our neighbors rest.
And eleven of you answered: Chris Langlois, Roger Sharp, MaryBeth LaCornu, Amy Clark, Donna and Dave Clark, Joanne Antonelli, Rich Watters, Roy Farman, Steve Samwel, and Ted Lowrey.
These volunteers didn't just fill shifts on a schedule. They showed up—week after week, through late nights and early mornings—because they believe our guests deserve safety, dignity, and the kind of steady care that says, "You matter. We're here."
Today, we're spotlighting a few of these remarkable individuals who've shared their reflections on what it means to serve during the shelter's quietest hours.
Celebrating Christmas Together: Community Brings Joy to WHO Guests
A WHO St Andrew Christmas would not be the same without the Garner family stockings. For at least 8 years, the family has provided a stocking for every guest on Christmas Eve. It is a delightful event for all involved. This tradition is a wonderful gift for our guests – adults and kids alike. It has also been a gift for our WHO team to follow the Garner crew, welcome them each year, catch up on their comings and goings, and see how they have grown over the years. We appreciate every one of them and the joy they bring to our guests.
Santa arrived this year on 12/23 to get the info from each guest [some were a bit shy, of course] on whether they had been nice – 100% nice rating all around. Santa also brought a helper who handed out an early-delivery toy. We are so grateful to Forrest, one of our volunteer coordinators, who is a friend of Santa and arranged for him to be at the WHO this year. Thanks to Santa, his helper, and his agent, Forrest. What a great time for guests and their children.
A big thank you to Mayor Anne and the Beaches Restaurant group for providing a delicious Christmas dinner of Turkey, Ham, potatoes, and dessert. In particular, the cranberry sauce got very high marks all around. Our guests who are new to the country enjoyed trying some of our traditional holiday foods. The Pumpkin pie was a hit.
Shout-outs!
The Vancouver Stake of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS), with the leadership of Tina and Paul Carnahan, has donated virtually all of the supplies we need to operate the WHO @ St Andrew each season… since 2018! In addition, the stake covers the entire month of January for volunteers and meals. There is no limit to our gratitude for these guys! We could not do WHO@SALC without them!
The McCann Family went into the forest to cut down a fresh Christmas tree for the WHO@SALC!
Our new washer and dryer, along with the beautiful red laundry cart, are bringing smiles to our laundry volunteers! (especially Michael Strauch and Jane Seidel!)
Quilt Donation from Judy and Bill Lintz. Quilts will be auctioned off at the WHO Auction
Karen Krajewski generously donated Christmas decorations for this year’s tree.
Sharon Barricks, once again, donated many bags of new coats for our guests!
A Christmas Eve Volunteer and her niece brought in a therapy dog, which was a HUGE hit with the children of WHO@SALC.
Lexie Knight from the KMR Group Foundation (Kate Jones & Marty Rifkin) delivered winter essentials for our WHO@SALC guests and other community members we serve. The essentials include hats, gloves, socks, emergency blankets, and coloring books.
Get Involved
January at WHO: A Season of Partnership and Community
We are blessed to have incredible community partnerships, and January showcases one of our most treasured. The LDS Vancouver Stake community has adopted the entire month, taking initiative to fill volunteer shifts and provide essential support as we reach the midpoint of our 23rd season. This partnership gives our team and regular volunteers a much-needed moment to catch our breath during the coldest months.
While LDS leadership has stepped up to cover many shifts, there are still openings available for volunteers from the greater community. It takes a village every month of the WHO season—and we'd love for you to be part of that village this January.
Whether you can prepare a meal, serve dinner, or provide overnight support, your presence makes a difference. No experience necessary—just a willing heart and a few hours of your time.
Find your shift today and join our community of care.
Pictured above: Tina Carnahan working with Jane Seidel to deliver supplies for the WHO@SALC.
Contact us.
Be the first to know about volunteer opportunities during the WHO season (Nov 1 - Mar 31). Get weekly emails on Sundays with volunteer spots and urgent needs, plus monthly newsletters with shelter stories, volunteer spotlights, and fundraising updates.
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Winter Hospitality Overflow
c/o St. Andrew Lutheran Church
5607 NE Gher Road
Vancouver, WA 98662 -
Jane Seidel, WHO Operations Coordinator
📞 (360) 607-4339 -
Linda Jo Devlaeminck and Forrest Gragg, Volunteer Coordinators
who@salcvan.org
(360) 780-6644
WHO is a community program of St. Andrew Lutheran Church. Your gift is tax-deductible as allowed by law. Federal Tax ID: 91-1034819
The Winter Hospitality Overflow at St. Andrew provides safe shelter, compassionate hospitality, and pathways to stability for neighbors in need during the coldest months of the year. Rooted in interfaith collaboration, we put love into action through volunteers, community partnerships, and professional housing support so that every guest experiences dignity, warmth, and hope.