Central to the mission of Firehouse Shelter is serving Birmingham’s chronically homeless men through emergency services (shelter, 4 daily meals, showers, and access to healthcare). Its 100-bed shelter provides job training and placement, drug and alcohol programming, rehabilitation services, and mental healthcare. Firehouse employs persons who are formerly homeless, bridging the gap with formally educated staff to help themselves and clients find common ground and to serve with compassion and cultural competence.
Firehouse operates the only low barrier shelter for Birmingham, Alabama’s hardest to house individuals, including the largest day shelter for men in the area. Its guests are primarily chronically homeless men, but it includes all people who identify as being homeless. This includes late intake housing for the working poor, and medical respite care for those discharging from hospitals but still in need of extended medical care. The Firehouse community also includes individuals working on a case plan the opportunity to stay on site during the day for supportive classes.
The emergency shelter employs case managers, program assistants, peer support specialists, and provides access to transportation, a gamut of supportive services, and access to addiction support groups. Firehouse works extensively with other area agencies to resolve all sorts of inequities, through AIDS awareness workshops, health clinics, GED courses, literacy classes, employment counseling, life skills, and job placement. A partnership with a therapeutic fine arts program provides weekly access to easily neglected aspects of human experience through poetry, art, theater, and dance.