'A lot of tears': Salvation Army will close its Winter Haven shelter on Feb. 11

Sara-Megan Walsh, Lakeland Ledger
·3 min read
The Salvation Army of Winter Haven has decided to close its Winter Haven Women's Shelter at 320 Martin Luther King Blvd. N.W. This leaves The Mission, located nearby at 180 E. Central Ave., as one of the only other provider of services for the homeless. But The Mission is not a shelter.
The Salvation Army of Winter Haven has decided to close its Winter Haven Women's Shelter at 320 Martin Luther King Blvd. N.W. This leaves The Mission, located nearby at 180 E. Central Ave., as one of the only other provider of services for the homeless. But The Mission is not a shelter.

WINTER HAVEN — There will be one less place for individuals to find shelter in Polk County, at a time when many of the region's homeless shelters are at or over capacity.

The Salvation Army announced it will be closing its Winter Haven shelter, 320 Martin Luther King Blvd. N.W., as of Feb. 11. The shelter has been open for more than 65 years, according to Lt. Daniel Jones, who said it was one of the first services the charitable organization offered in the Eastern Polk area.

"There have been a lot of tears, a lot of tears and prayers involved in making this decision," Jones said. "It's one of the hardest decisions we've ever made."

Jones and his wife, Amanda, were assigned to take command of the Salvation Army Winter Haven last June. In reviewing its finances, the couple said they discovered the program has been operating at a deficit for more than a decade.

The organization's shelter is licensed for 24 beds. And while it originally served women and children, it was converted during COVID to serve only women, Jones said. It has averaged 15 women a night, with ideally guests staying short term for two to three weeks.

Amanda Jones said while most guests' stays were relatively short, the Winter Haven shelter did have some long-term guests, including individuals receiving Social Security disability who were struggling to find affordable housing.

As of early January, the Salvation Army's caseworkers stopped accepting new intakes into the women's shelter. There were approximately 11 women still living at the shelter. Amanda Jones said the organization is rapidly working with others in the region to find these individuals other housing options, rather than transferring to another shelter.

The Salvation Army's decision to close its women's shelter in Winter Haven leaves The Mission, located nearby at 180 E. Central Ave., as one of the only other provider of services for the homeless. But The Mission is not a shelter.
The Salvation Army's decision to close its women's shelter in Winter Haven leaves The Mission, located nearby at 180 E. Central Ave., as one of the only other provider of services for the homeless. But The Mission is not a shelter.

The Salvation Army will continue to operate its food pantry, social services including emergency assistance programs, and community services for youth and families.

Daniel Jones said he hopes to be able to put more funding particularly into its emergency programs, hopefully helping individuals and families avoid becoming homeless in the first place.

The Joneses said they would be willing to reconsider and reopen the shelter if it receives additional financial support from the community. They estimated it would take about $125,000 a year, with a multi-year commitment from one or more corporate or private philanthropists to make it feasible.

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Those interested in partnering with The Salvation Army are encouraged to contact the Winter Haven administrative offices at 863-294-7493.

While there are other organizations in Winter Haven that provide services to individuals experiencing homelessness, including The Mission nearby, they to not provide temporary shelter. The Mission offers such services as a food pantry, soup kitchen, a basic-needs closet, and day-center services such as Wi-Fi and showers, according to its website. It also says it can assist homeless guests with acquiring an ID, birth certificates and Social Security cards.

Sara-Megan Walsh can be reached at swalsh@theledger.com or 863-802-7545. Follow on X @SaraWalshFl.

This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Citing program deficit, Salvation Army will close Winter Haven shelter