SAN ANGELO, Texas — Summer days in West Texas left many people in search of places to stay cool. In mid June, St. Paul’s Presbyterian Church of San Angelo decided to open a Community Oasis.
The center is a place where the community is welcome to stop by and use the services offered such as Wi-Fi, a place to charge electronics, cool down or grab food.
“This is something our community needs, the summers are getting hotter and we need to make sure that we don't have people dying of heat exposure on our streets,” St. Paul Presbyterian Church Pastor, Tim Davenport-Herbst, said.
The services are covered through help from a number of individual donors, churches and St. Paul itself. The Community Oasis has played a role in offering a safe space, especially for those without housing.
“One of the most important things for our homeless friends and neighbors was being able to safely relax some place because when you're on the street you're in constant danger of violence,” Davenport-Herbst said.
Besides being able to relax, the center also offers people a meal from food received through its partnership with the Concho Valley Regional Food Bank.
“What surprised us a couple of weeks ago was finding out that after SAISD shut down the free lunches through no fault of their own it was had to do with funding. We had people from the high school we had people showing up here to get food,” Davenport-Herbst said.
Since the center opened its doors in mid June, an average of 15 to 20 people stop by daily.
“People just love it, they love it here, it matters to them,” Davenport-Herbst said.
St. Paul holds food distributions every third Saturday of the month from nine a.m. to 11 a.m., with the exception for the month of September, the food distribution will be held at the Concho Valley Regional Food Bank, 1313 S. Hill St.
The Community Oasis is open to the community from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday to Friday in the westernmost building, 11 N. Park St.