It’s lunchtime on a recent hot Friday afternoon. Dozens of people wait in line in the Roof Above parking lot as volunteers serve barbecue in Styrofoam take-out containers.
There’s also a truck serving ice cream, a truck with mobile showers and laundry, and a third truck with a mobile library.
Almost a month after heavy rain caused a roof to collapse at one of their buildings, other groups are stepping up to help Roof Above continue its efforts to provide meals, hot showers and laundry services to people who are homeless.
Until last month, the organization served its daily lunch inside its primary Day Services facility, commonly known as “The Hub.”
The roof collapse has left them with only one smaller, undamaged building. Yet, even with the chaos, Roof Above never closed.
“Literally, eight hours after a catastrophic roof collapse, [we] were still doing services that [we] would have done,” said Randall Hilt, Roof Above’s vice president of unsheltered services.
At first, staff was operating in crisis mode. But now Roof Above has settled into a rhythm, and this is a good thing, Hilt said. “The one thing about our Day Services Center and Roof Above is people come here for services. Not only do they get the service, but [they’re] coming for the community.”
The day of the collapse, Roof Above set up an outdoor lunch station and relocated their nurse’s station to their undamaged building. However, they still needed help providing showers and laundry services, which were housed in the damaged building.
That’s when the Charlotte nonprofit Hope Vibes stepped in. At the request of Roof Above, Hope Vibes agreed to park their mobile laundry and shower truck outside Roof Above’s Day Center.
“Right now, we’re out here just once a week, depending on the day,” said Hope Vibes’ co-founder Emmanuel Threatt. “And it’s been [either] Wednesdays or Fridays.”
Threatt said Roof Above’s situation is exactly what Hope Vibes is built for.
“We’re designed to fit this need,” Threatt said. “We designed this truck to provide services on an ongoing basis to people who need it every day, but also in situations where disasters strike.“People who are going through disasters need it as well. And so, for us, it’s just another day.”
Roof Above’s already established partners were also quick to help the organization in its time of need.
For the past two years, the Charlotte Mecklenburg Library has parked a truck full of books outside the Roof Above center each month for people to borrow from. The library had to skip these monthly visits when Roof Above’s roof collapsed.
But now, the library’s mobile director, Saul Hernandez, says the visits are back on.
“We’re still here to engage people, and, in my personal opinion, I think one of the most valuable services that we offer here is just seeing people and treating them as such,” Hernandez said. “We’re here to offer them a wealth of escape and magic and imagination.”
Hope Vibes and the mobile library are only two instances of the Charlotte community rallying to Roof Above’s side. Hilt said there have been many more.
“The support has been tremendous, and I would say from day one, people were calling … whether it be donors, volunteers, other organizations, [asking] ‘What do you need?’”
This support meant Roof Above never had to halt their services. And Hilt said this embodies one of their core values of being “solution-oriented.”
“I believe our staff isn’t so much concerned or focused on ‘When are we going to get back in [to our building]?’, Hilt said. “It’s more like, how are we going to bring back the services the best we can?”
The day center’s roof collapse was a blow, but Roof Above is hoping to complete building repairs by December.
Until then, Hilt said community support and staff determination will ensure people who are homeless still get the services they need.
He said residents can help by donating or volunteering to cook and serve meals. He said no matter what, the organization has no plans to close.
“The word is, ‘How do we stay open?’ And that’s what we carry forward,” Hilt said.
