“Homelessness increases every day,” Fugate said.
SHALOM served about 130 clients — men, women, and children — last year, he said. The agency is the only one in Butler County that accepts all three groups of homeless clients, Fugate said.
Now in its 24th year, SHALOM, operating without federal financial assistance, was founded in 2002 by Roy and Pat Ickes.
SHALOM and eight local churches will start housing the homeless for nine weeks on Jan. 4.
Clients sleep on mats and the men and women are in separate rooms. Those needing assistance are picked up every day at 5 p.m. at the SHALOM office, which is located in the lower level of the First United Methodist Church, 120 S. Broad St., then driven to the host church. Volunteers feed the homeless dinner and breakfast and chaperone throughout the night, Fugate said.
Daily intakes are performed from 4-5 p.m. of the hosting season. New guests must arrive at 4 p.m. on their initial day of stay, according to Fugate.
Clients must be sober, have no warrants and not be registered sex offenders, according to Fugate.
He blamed the increase in homelessness on the economy, the cost of living and lack of education. But some people, regardless of outside influences, just prefer a live on the streets, Fugate said.
“A lot of it is choices,” he said. “For them, this is all they know. It’s generational for a lot of them. There’s plenty of blame to go around.”
Middletown and the entire Butler County, which has the largest unhoused population in the state, with nearly 500 people experiencing homelessness or living in encampments, have struggled with homelessness for decades.
Last month, Commissioner Cindy Carpenter said she wants to see Butler County address homelessness with a new facility, and has a plan to do so, but it will require buy-in from the county and Hamilton.
Carpenter submitted the proposal to her fellow county commissioners and Hamilton City Council to convert a county-owned building into an emergency shelter and resource hub at 3400 Symmes Road, which the commissioner described as a “long-vacant public asset.”
Already secured funds could be used, namely from the HOME Investment Partnerships American Rescue Plan program (HOME-ARP) and the OneOhio opioid settlement.
This would be a $7.56 million investment with the county paying $45,000 for design and permitting, according to the plan. Carpenter’s plan also calls for the city of Hamilton to “manage construction and operations” as Butler County would retain fiscal and compliance oversight for all federal and state funds.
Hamilton City Manager Craig Bucheit confirmed the administration received Carpenter’s proposal and staff is reviewing it, stating, “There may be some potential, but we need more information before we can determine whether it’s workable for the city.”
Carpenter’s plan may not be considered by her fellow commissioners, they said.
Last summer, Heather Gibson, owner of Triple Moon Coffee Company at 1100 Central Ave., Middletown, said there were two incidents near her business and she has asked the city to do more for the homeless population.
On June 11, Gibson said a man hit a woman in the face in Governor’s Square. She said both were homeless. A police report said the woman was the aggressor, detailing she had hit the man “six or seven times” before he responded with a hit to her face.
Another day, Triple Moon workers arrived at work around 6:30 a.m. and witnessed two men fighting near the business’ parking lot.
The suspect was given a disorderly conduct warning, according to the incident report.
Later the same day, the same suspect was arrested in the area of Baltimore Street and Woodlawn Avenue after punching a man multiple times in the face. He was charged with assault, a first-degree misdemeanor.
Police Chief Earl Nelson said Middletown officers are out every day checking homeless camps and on the unsheltered population in the downtown area, and downtown business owners have those officers’ cell phone numbers.
Staff writers Bryn Dippold and Michael D. Pitman contributed to this report.
SHALOM 2026 SCHEDULE
Serving Homeless with Alternative Lodging Of Middletown (SHALOM) will host the homeless for nine weeks this winter. Those in need of housing are transported at 5 p.m. every day from the SHALOM office, which is located in the lower level of the First United Methodist Church, 120 S. Broad St., to the host church.
All guests are allowed to shower, dine, rest and share fellowship in a safe and warm environment and at approximately 8 a.m. each day the guests are transported back downtown, organizers said.
Jan. 4-10: Breiel Church of God
Jan. 11-17: Stratford Heights Church of God
Jan. 18-24: Stratford Heights Church of God
Jan. 25-31: Holy Family Parish
Feb. 1-7: Berachah Church
Feb. 8-14: Crosspointe Church of Christ
Feb. 15-21: First Baptist Church
Feb. 22-28: Quest Church
March 1-7: First United Methodist/Quest/First Baptist Church, Franklin
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