WILBURTON, Okla. — A Latimer County homeless shelter aims to serve as a stepping-stone for guests.
Richard Thurman, once homeless in Phoenix, credits "The Resting Place" for helping him and his wife get on their feet.
"We were down and out, on our last leg," he said. "Somebody told us about this facility and it's been nothing but leaps and bounds for us since we showed up here. We've accomplished more in about the week and a half that we've been here than we've accomplished in a year and a half of being together."
The Thurmans said the shelter helped them get married and secure their identification cards and birth certificates.
Also taking shelter is Choctaw veteran Bobby Coley, who found refuge after living in his car.
"I consider myself homeless. I've been traveling here and there, living in my car till I wrecked my car during a snowstorm. Didn't really have no place to stay. Finally, somebody told me about this place, so I called them and they said, come on over here."
Roy Lee Hall, who runs The Resting Place with his wife, Vanessa, is motivated by personal experiences.
"When I was a boy growing up, I didn’t know where our next meal was gonna come from," he said.
Hall said the shelter relies on donations, grant funds, and his income to stay afloat.
Despite mounting utility issues, the Halls are determined to keep the shelter running and to fund their dreams of expanding. "We can use anything that people can help us with. Especially if we had funds, and what have you, to help with the electricity and the gas."
Its current facility has a separate men's and women's shelter with bunker-style beds. The Halls said they plan to build a third building with family units.
It hosts free community meals every 2nd and 4th Saturday of the month, and on holidays. It is accepting donations via Cash App at $TheRestingPlace.
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