SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — The Rancho Motel near Kearney and Glenstone is turning into a long-term winter emergency shelter.
O’Reilly Hospitality, the motel owner, partnered with the Springfield Catholic Charities of Southern Missouri to provide the shelter at no cost.
The shelter will hold up to 16 homeless families and women in need of medical respite. The rooms are complete with refrigerators and microwaves.
A blessing ceremony was hosted for the shelter Wednesday, Dec. 2. John Lunardini, project manager for the Rancho Homeless Shelter, said a lot of work went into making the rooms livable.
“You have to imagine that these rooms were closed five years ago,” said Lunardini. “So, our volunteers had to come in and clean all these rooms out, all new furniture and some carpeting.”
The shelter is supported by CARES Act funding and will be open to the homeless through April 2021.
