A Ministry of Hospitality and Shelter

Room In The Inn is a seasonal winter shelter for homeless men of the greater Lexington area. We are modeled from a ministry started 23 years ago in Nashville, TN that began with 4 participating congregations that has now grown to become Nashville’s second largest provider of overnight shelter with over 156 congregations averaging 180 guests each evening.

	2008-09 Ministry Statistics
	Since 11/2/2008, 3415 beds were provided to 38 different guests. 16 congregations served 6257 meals 3884 sack lunches and offered 897 showers. Over 4116 volunteers have shared in the hospitality of hosting the homeless in their church.

The Lexington chapter of Room In The Inn ministry has just begun its sixth year of hosting homeless men. We began in January 2004 with 4 churches serving 4 nights per week and have now grown to include 18 congregations who expect to provide more than 4,400 beds by the end of the Winter 2008-09 Season ending March 28, 2009. Providing these services will involve approximately the same number of volunteers giving of their time and their hearts to serve as hosts to our Guests. We have been blessed to experience growth from last season by the addition of new congregations allowing us to double our service to serve 2 groups of up to 15 guests nightly – doubling our capacity over the winter 2007-08 season. Statistics show Lexington’s homeless population to be approximately 1,300 persons so we celebrate God’s faithfulness to this ministry as well as to the community we serve by providing this additional capacity.

Room In The Inn consists of congregations of all faiths working together to provide small independent shelters within their own facilities. These congregations are committed to the principle that small shelters are better. They are safer and offer the opportunity for one-on-one relationships to be formed between Hosts and Guests.

Typically a congregation will shelter 14-15 guests. Each congregation is asked to provide a safe, warm, and comfortable place for the Guests to sleep, a hot meal in the evening, a hot breakfast the next morning, and a sack lunch for the day, as well as transportation to and from the church. So much more will happen as volunteer Hosts sit down and break bread with those they have committed to serve!

Guests are invited to host churches only after being interviewed and registered with a faith-based group called The Innkeepers. Potential Guests are reviewed for drug/alcohol use, behavioral, psychological, or other health issues that host churches are just not equipped to handle. Health screening includes testing for TB within 3 months of the ministry season opening. Invited Guests are assembled each evening at a downtown location to be picked up by the host churches. Guests may participate in RITI only through the intake process and by invitation. Access to a host church on a RITI evening is heavily restricted for the protection of both Guests and Hosts alike.

Room In The Inn creates an opportunity for those who have more in life to recognize that they are no different than those who have little or nothing. It is an opportunity for both the homeless and non-homeless to experience God in a different way.

The goal of Room In The Inn is to be the face, the heart, and the hands of Christ to our Guests in a safe and non-threatening environment, with the added benefit of being able to educate thousands of Lexington area residents n their own congregations about the nature of homelessness.