Bethel Winter House making a real difference in the Y-K Delta
ANCHORAGE, Alaska – Winter is long gone in Western Alaska, but the Bethel Winter House is already looking forward to its 11th season and offering extended hours. The shelter helps prevent death from exposure for people experiencing homelessness in Bethel during the harsh winter months. Right now, Bethel Winter House is an overnight shelter only, but with the help of a $5,000 GCI contribution the hours will be expanded to daytime.
Before the shelter opened in 2013, Bethel experienced between four and seven preventable exposure related deaths each winter. Since the Bethel Winter House, there have been four preventable exposure-related deaths in the past 10 years, according to the nonprofit’s seasonal reports.
“Even if you have a place to stay, Bethel can be a really hard place to live during the winter months,” said Executive Director of the Bethel Winter House Jaela Milford. “For those in our community who are experiencing homelessness, the risk of death due to exposure is extreme. The data shows our shelter has truly made a difference and expanding our hours will only improve our services and ability to help those in need in our community.”
“Now that it’s summer in Alaska, the last thing that we Alaskans want to think about is the chill of winter,” said GCI Gives Senior Manager Tiffany Vassar. “However, it’s the perfect time to prepare and make sure Bethel’s most vulnerable population has the help they need. We hope the additional funding can help keep the doors open longer and people safe during the frigid winter season.”
GCI has been a sponsor and supporter of the shelter since it was opened in 2013. Bethel Winter house anticipates serving more than 350 individuals and providing more than 6,000 beds and meals during the winter season.
For more information about GCI Gives, visit https://www.gci.com/why-gci/gcigives.
About GCI
Headquartered in Alaska, GCI provides data, mobile, video, voice and managed services to consumer, business, government, and carrier customers throughout Alaska, serving more than 200 communities. The company has invested more than $4 billion in its Alaska network and facilities over the past 40 years and recently launched true standards-based 5G NR service in Anchorage, now the nation’s northernmost 5G service area. Learn more about GCI at www.gci.com. GCI is a wholly owned subsidiary of Liberty Broadband Corporation (Nasdaq: LBRDA, LBRDK, LBRDP). Learn more about Liberty Broadband at http://www.libertybroadband.com.