Who We Are

Our “bigger vision” is to provide the homeless individual a setting where he/she can address the issue(s) which caused his/her homelessness and find the help they need when they need it. We cooperate with other homeless service providers for their help. The Community Winter Shelter is our initial program.

The Community Winter Shelter was first organized in 1998 as a mission of the St James United Methodist Church. It was first located in and supported by the church. The shelter became incorporated February 7, 2007, as The Bigger Vision of Athens, a non-profit tax exempt 501(c)3 organization. Funding is now provided by individuals, organizations and churches.

Our mission is to provide the individual who is temporarily homeless a warm, dry place to sleep each night on a first-come, first-served basis, by providing assistance as needed to help each person get back on their feet. To do this, each person is provided a drop cloth, a 2” foam mat, two blankets, a pillow and pillow case for the night. A variety of toiletries, socks, hats, and gloves are available upon request as long as donated supplies last.

The location of the Community Winter Shelter has changed five times over the last 12 years. Recently, The Bigger Vision has acquired a new building which will double our capacity to serve individuals who are homeless in Athens. Additionally we hope to be able to transition from an emergency winter shelter to a year round community emergency shelter with the acquisition of this building.

 

Recent Successes (which will potentially double with the new building!)

With God’s Grace and the help of hundreds of volunteers, this past year alone we were able to:

    * House 122 Individuals
    * Provide 2,773 bed nights
    * Serve over 6,000 meals
    * Wash hundreds of loads of blankets
    * Offer over 4,300 volunteer hours of time at the shelter

Your assistance as a volunteer and/or your financial contribution will help us to expand our efforts to help those in need.