The Refuge Otsego

10/06/2026

Hello Friends:

Just a short reminder that The Refuge "Soup for Hope" lunch is just a week away! We can't wait to see you on Tuesday, October 13th 11:30 - 12:45 pm under the Pavilion in downtown Ga***rd for a simple meal served in an outdoor space typical of meals for the homeless.

The lunch is free but donations are gladly accepted (but not required). We want everyone to join us. We are so grateful our local State Police post will be serving lunch and attendees will have a special opportunity to view our display of a winter "encampment" depicting how many who are homeless unfortunately endure their winters when housing is not available. For an introduction to this reality or if you cannot make it on Tuesday the 13th, attached is a display of what an encampment in the woods might look like. We hope you will take a moment to view it.

Another, SAVE THE DATE for you. We are having another Town Hall Meeting on Tuesday, November 17th at the Otsego County Public Library in Ga***rd 11:45 am to 1:30 pm. Please mark your calendar to come and enjoy a small lunch and learn more about how The Refuge is planning to use local input from prior meetings. Our theme? "Getting Real About Homelessness in Otsego County: Finding Solutions Together". You will not want to miss out on learning about the next steps we want to take. There is no charge for lunch. Please join us.

Kelly Korson, Board Member

Your Kindness & Support are Greatly Appreciated,
Your Friends at the Refuge

09/24/2026

Have you met Al yet?

Maybe you have but if not, now’s the perfect time to say hello! 👋

Come meet Al or reach out and introduce yourself. We’re excited to welcome her as our new Shelter Coordinator for the upcoming season! 💙

Want to meet her in person? You can find Al at our upcoming event, our Soup for Hope Event on October 13th from 11:30 AM–12:45 PM! 🍲❤️

This will be a great opportunity to stop by, say hello, and get to know Al before our office opens in November.

ABOUT AL,

Al is deeply committed to serving her community and caring for others. She serves as Board Chairwoman and Secretary of Christian Homeschoolers of Northern Michigan Co-op, an Advisory Board Member and Secretary for The Salvation Army Great Lakes office, and a member of VFW Post 1518 Auxiliary. She also volunteers with New Life Pregnancy Center, and the Otsego County Animal Shelter, and organizes homeschool dances for families in her area.

Volunteerism has been a lifelong passion for Al. Beginning as a child and continuing into adulthood, she has served through church VBS programs, Sunday School, and children's ministries. Her involvement with Girl Scouts began as a child and later continued as a troop leader, helping foster a lasting commitment to service and community involvement.

Joining The Refuge as Shelter Coordinator is a natural continuation of that calling. With a heart for people and families, Al is passionate about caring for her community, helping those in need, and being part of the solution.

Welcome to our Team Al.

09/19/2026

Volunteers get The Refuge ready for its November 2nd start date by sharing the "love" during Otsego County United Way's "Day of Caring" on September 11.They filled shopping bags with paper and other essential living products for clients of The Refuge. This project was made possible, in part, by a generous gift from The People Fund of Great Lakes Energy.

09/17/2026

09/16/2026

🏠 HELLO, WE’RE THE REFUGE! ❤️

As we continue to grow and welcome more people we wanted to take a moment to introduce ourselves and share a little more about who we are and what we do.

The Refuge is Otsego County’s only emergency shelter program, serving individuals and families experiencing homelessness during the cold-weather months. Depending on weather, our shelter season typically runs from November through May of the following year.

📍 Our office is located inside the United Way building, toward the front of the building.

As we prepare for another shelter season, our new Shelter Coordinator, Al, is getting ready and looking forward to working with our community.

🏠 HOW OUR PROGRAM WORKS

The Refuge has a partnership with NEMCSA (they have there own program requirements), and when you come to our office, you’ll meet with our Shelter Coordinator, who will talk with you about your situation and ask a few qualifying questions.

Our program has eligibility requirements, including:
• Being an Otsego County resident for at least 30 days.
• Having gainful employment

Once someone qualifies for our program, we provide resources, including a landlord list, to help them begin looking for stable housing.

From there, it is the individual’s responsibility to reach out to landlords and work toward securing housing, while staying in communication with us. We’ll continue working with them and helping provide the appropriate next steps along the way.

🤝 WANT TO BE PART OF THE REFUGE?

Our Board of Directors is made up of nine individuals who have invested their time, experience, and heart into our community, and we are always looking for additional people who want to join us in this mission.

No experience is necessary.

The only thing we ask is that you come with an open mind and a willingness to help.

We know it can be intimidating to walk into a board meeting where you may not know anyone, especially when you know you want to get involved but aren’t quite sure where to start.

And that’s okay.

You don’t have to have all the answers. You don’t have to know exactly what you can bring to the table. Sometimes, you just have to take that first step.

We will welcome you with open arms. ❤️

And if serving on our Board isn’t something you’re interested in, that’s completely okay too! There are many ways to become involved with The Refuge whether through volunteering, donating, community partnerships, or simply helping spread the word about the work we do.

Together, we can make a difference. Together, we can help make sure no one in our community has to face homelessness alone.

If you have questions, want to learn more, would like to volunteer, or are interested in joining our Board, send us a message right here on Facebook or email us at:

📧 [email protected]

🏠 The Refuge of Otsego County
Together We Can! ❤️

09/16/2026

Please reach out if you’re willing to help.

PLEASE SHARE

Your participation is essential to our success. In response to early inquiries regarding next year's schedule, we are now accepting bookings for January through March. Available dates are as follows: January 8, 15, 22, and 28; February 5, 12, 19, and 26; and March 5, 12, 19, and 26. We offer flexible arrangements, including hosting or adopting a Friday. Please contact Tony at 989-390-3351, via email at [email protected], or through our page

09/15/2026

📣 WE HAVE SOME EXCITING NEWS! 📣

Last night, while attending our local City Council meeting last night. The Refuge was placed on the agenda by Councilman Welitzkin, who spoke about the important work The Refuge does for our community and why he believes our organization is making a real difference.

As a result, the City will meet with The Refuge and the City Attorney to create a contract that would provide $5,000 in funding to The Refuge to assist City of Ga***rd residents in need.

And the best part? The motion passed unanimously! 🙌

And then towards the end of the meeting Daphne got up and spoke, the one who gifted us our storage unit. And MATCHED that 5K. Last night was great but there’re is still more work to do. As we still need to raise more money for our buget.

We are beyond excited and grateful for this opportunity. And thankful to the councilmen for being an advocate for us. This is more than funding it is another step toward hopefully building stronger partnerships, helping our neighbors, and continuing our mission.

A HUGE thank you to Pastor Megan and our Board of Directors Matt, Kathy, Sue, Kelly and Judi for sharing why our organization is so important to our community and us and your personal stories. Being vulnerable can be a difficult situation for any. The person experiencing and the family or friends not knowing how to be there. We learned that tonight and sometimes that’s okay.

There are resources available within The Refuge available to you at any time the office is open. And you can also visit our website https://www.otsegorefuge.org and click on the Community Resources Tab. Or you can visit https://www.finditotsego.com for statewide resources.

Together, we can continue making a difference. ❤️

The Refuge - Together We Can!

***rdMI

09/11/2026

A lot has been happening at The Refuge over the past few weeks, and today we want to take a moment to recognize someone who has stepped up to help us continue our mission.

A HUGE shoutout to Daphne for her incredibly generous donation of a storage unit for The Refuge! ❤️

This space will allow us to keep essential items organized, safely stored, and readily available when they are needed most. It may seem like a simple donation, but for us, it makes a big difference in how we serve our community.

Daphne, thank you for your generosity, your support, and for believing in the work we are doing. Together, we can continue making a difference.

The Refuge Board of Directors & Staff
Together We Can! ❤️

09/11/2026

“Volunteers pack “hotel bags” for clients of The Refuge, Otsego’s emergency housing program as part of Otsego County United Way’s “Day of Caring” for September 11th.

The bags contain paper and food preparation products and given to clients of The Refuge so they can cook the food they receive from the Otsego Food County Food Bank in their hotel rooms. This video shows the busy process of filling the bags made possible by a generous gift from The People Fund of Great Lakes Energy.”

09/11/2026

“Volunteers pack “hotel bags” for clients of The Refuge, Otsego’s emergency housing program as part of Otsego County United Way’s “Day of Caring” for September 11th.

The bags contain paper and food preparation products and given to clients of The Refuge so they can cook the food they receive from the Otsego Food County Food Bank in their hotel rooms. This video shows the busy process of filling the bags made possible by a generous gift from The People Fund of Great Lakes Energy.”