The Oxford Winter House project grew out of a longstanding community effort to address homelessness and housing instability in Oxford. Over the past several years, local organizations and community members have worked to better understand the needs of our neighbors experiencing homelessness and to build awareness of the challenges they face. In particular, Oxford Area Solutions for Housing (OASH) has helped bring greater attention to homelessness through community education and the Point-in-Time counts conducted in 2023 and 2024. That growing awareness, combined with the community’s experience providing emergency winter shelter, ultimately led to the formation of Sheltering Oxford.
In 2025, with support from the City of Oxford and leaders in the local faith community, a broad group of community members convened to develop an emergency winter shelter. Beginning in June 2025, pastors, housing advocates, social service providers and others met regularly to plan the shelter, drawing on the experience of local individuals who had worked in homeless shelters and consulting with county agencies.
That effort resulted in the Oxford Winter House, a 24/7 winter shelter that operated from December 2025 through February 2026. The Winter House provided more than a warm place to sleep. Staff and volunteers worked to connect residents with services and resources related to employment, health care, benefits, financial stability and housing, with the goal of helping people leave the shelter in a stronger position than when they arrived.
The response demonstrated what is possible when a community comes together. The City of Oxford provided funding, churches and community members contributed donations and in-kind support, and a large network of volunteers helped with food, supplies, companionship, facility improvements, logistics and daily operations.
Sheltering Oxford grew from that collective effort. As an independent organization, we are building on the relationships, experience and lessons of the Oxford Winter House to provide safe, compassionate shelter and support for our neighbors experiencing homelessness or housing instability. In the coming winter season, Sheltering Oxford will take responsibility for operating the Winter House and continuing this community commitment