Provide Critical Winter Shelter to Our Unhoused Neighbors
0% complete
$2,095 raised of
9 donations
WINTER TENT INITIATIVE: Emergency Shelter for Unhoused Neighbors in Southern Illinois
HELP US KEEP PEOPLE ALIVE THIS WINTER
My name is P.D. Van Klaveren. As many of you know, I work as a harm reduction and peer support specialist serving nine counties in Southern Illinois: Madison, St. Clair, Monroe, Randolph, Jackson, Perry, Washington, Clinton, and Bond. My daily work centers on individuals experiencing homelessness, substance use disorders (SUD/OUD), psychiatric distress, trauma, and chronic disconnection from traditional services.
Winter is the most dangerous season for the people I serve. Many have no access to warming centers, shelters, or rehousing programs due to circumstances far beyond their control: legal histories, psychiatric conditions, trauma, lack of transportation, bans from facilities, or simply the overwhelming scarcity of available beds. These barriers leave them surviving winter nights outdoors, in the woods, behind buildings, in abandoned lots, along bike trails, next to railroad tracks, and in the forgotten corners of our towns.
And yet, every one of them deserves warmth, safety, dignity, and the chance to make it through another winter.
WHY THIS FUNDRAISER MATERS
I currently support between 200–400 unhoused neighbors throughout: Alton, Wood River, Granite City, East St. Louis, Cahokia, Belleville, O’Fallon, Waterloo, Chester, Murphysboro, Carbondale, Nashville, Pinckneyville, Carlyle, and Greenville.
Forty of my clients have already asked for winter tents. That number will grow as temperatures drop.
I have found a reliable, insulated, four-season tent that is snow-hardy, weather-proof, and Arctic-tested, packs down small, and can be moved quickly; an essential feature for individuals who are regularly displaced or forced to relocate by local authorities.
Each tent sleeps two people and costs $120 including shipping.
My grant funding does not allow me to purchase tents, and the need far exceeds my current budget. This is where community can step in and save lives.
YOUR DONATION PROVIDES IMMEDIATE, DIRECT IMPACT
Every dollar goes toward purchasing winter-ready survival tents that go directly into the hands of the people who need them most. I personally know each individual receiving a tent; by name, by location, by need. My team and I deliver the tents ourselves and help set them up to ensure safe use.
Your donation provides:
- A four-season winter survival tent
- Protection from snow, freezing rain, and subzero temperatures
- Dignity and safety for people with nowhere else to go
- A lifeline for those banned from shelters or denied services
- You don’t have to deliver anything. You fund the shelter. I’ll get it directly to them.
THE PEOPLE WE SERVE ARE WORTH PROTECTING
Many are living in active trauma, struggling with mental health crises, chronic illness, addiction, or the effects of long-term poverty. Some have been pushed out of their towns to the fringes of county limits. Some have no family. Some are living completely outdoors for the first time in their lives after devastating loss.
They deserve warmth.
They deserve safety.
They deserve compassion.
Winter will not wait.
Neither should we.
HOW YOU CAN HELP
$5 or $10 - Helps move us closer to one full shelter.
$120 - Buys one complete winter survival tent for a person in crisis.
$240 - Shelters four people.
ANY AMOUNT
Directly supports the most vulnerable members of our communities.
If you cannot purchase a whole tent, that’s absolutely okay. Every contribution matters.
Goal: 40 Tents (and More If Funding Allows)
Forty clients have already asked me for winter tents. Our goal is to cover every request—and expand beyond that as funds allow. The tents chosen are tested, durable, safe, and made specifically for harsh weather conditions.
Let's help our neighbors face winter with shelter, dignity, and hope.
Organizer
