Dozens of community members stood on the lawn of Carpenter’s Church downtown on Tuesday, waiting with high anticipation for the big reveal of what the church has planned for the future. Starting as a small soup kitchen 20 years back, the church has come a long way.
They are the only day shelter in town that allows the homeless to walk in with no requirements an questions asked. Chad Wheeler, Carpenter’s Church Executive Director announced they are renaming Carpenter’s Church to “Open Door”.
“The name change helps us show that there’s an open door church, an open door community center, open door housing, and an open door wellness clinic,” Wheeler said.
The church staff hopes to have the wellness clinic open by the fall, where the homeless community can receive free medical assistance. Sgt. Steven Bergen with LPD’s Homeless Outreach Team said he’s able to see the need for the clinic first hand.
“This is going to limit the cost and availability is going to be great, and building rapport is important and I think with having a clinic, and people working there, and it will be utilized,” Bergen said.
Walter Pascal, known as “Quinn” to his friends, was homeless for 22 years, he’s been a part of Carpenter’s Church since day one.
“I love it, I love the open door because if God says knock then he’ll open the door for us,” Pascal said.
