Located on the ground floor of the Brooklyn Heights Synagogue, 131 Remsen Street, between Henry and Clinton Streets, the Brooklyn Heights Synagogue Homeless Shelter provides a warm, safe place to sleep, along with dinner and breakfast, for ten women Monday –Thursday during the winter months.  The Shelter is an entirely volunteer effort, coordinated by BHS congregants and supported by members and non-members alike including other synagogues and community groups.

Guests are brought to the Shelter by bus from the Olivieri Center for Homeless Women, a drop-in center and social service agency in Manhattan. All Shelter guests are screened by the Olivieri staff.    

The only thing all our guests have in common is that they are homeless women.  They are otherwise a diverse group in terms of age, background and circumstances.  Some women will spend the night in our Shelter having been at work all day.  In addition to a range of essential services, the Olivieri Center also provides shower facilities.

Although the women may have eaten before they are brought to the Shelter, we provide an evening meal each night.  The hospitality and opportunity to dine in a small group setting are at least as important as the food we serve.  In the morning we also offer breakfast, and the women are encouraged to take non-perishable leftovers with them when they leave; in many cases these leftovers will serve as their lunch

Volunteer Opportunities at the Shelter
Overnight Stay:  Generally, two adults spend the night at the Shelter; two people may sign up together or an individual will be paired with another volunteer.  A child over the age of Bar or Bat Mitzvah is considered an adult and may spend the night with a parent.  Children under the age of 13 may spend the night with a parent and a second adult.

Early Shift:  We have created “Early Shifts” on some evenings for those volunteers, especially families with school-age children, who find it difficult to commit to an overnight stay yet would like to be involved in the work of the Shelter.  Early Shift volunteers arrive at 7 pm and leave by 9:30 pm (by which time a an overnight shift volunteer has arrived to take over).  Early shift volunteers help set up the beds, serve dinner and clean-up the kitchen.  

Cooking:  Volunteer cooks may prepare a meal at home and deliver it to the Shelter kitchen by 7:00 p.m. with a description of the meal and instructions for serving/heating.  Alternatively, the meal may be prepared on site.  It is perfectly acceptable to order prepared food for delivery; please call the Synagogue office (718.522.2070) to let the staff know to expect a delivery.  Some Overnight Volunteers choose to cook as well. Cooking is also an excellent way to involve children as Shelter volunteers. Desserts, in particular, are always popular.  

Weekly Coordinator:  An experienced Overnight Volunteer who commits to spending at least one hour every two weeks throughout the Shelter season to help Overnight Volunteers get the evening underway.

Pantry Shopping: BHS Religious School families sign up each week to shop for the Shelter pantry.  This is a great opportunity to introduce young children to the work of the shelter and a meaningful experience for parents to share with their children.

Pinch-hitting:  When there is a last-minute opening for an Overnight Volunteer due to illness or other unavoidable emergency, the Coordinators turn to the Pinch Hitters list.  Placing your name on the list does not obligate you to step in when called, only to consider helping on short notice.  To place your name on the Pinch-hitters list, contact Barbara Deinhardt, This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .

How to Volunteer
A volunteer sign-up calendar will appear here in the fall when we begin recruiting volunteers for the 2008-09 shelter season.  Meanwhile, if you would like more information about our shelter, or you would like to join the Shelter Committee, please contact Barbara Deinhardt at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Sign Up to Spend the Night or Cook
Use our sign-up calendar www.bhsbrooklyn.org/shelterschedule to choose a date to volunteer at the Shelter.  This season the Shelter will be open from Monday, November 24, 2008-Thursday, April 2, 2009.  If you would like more information about our Shelter, need help using the sign-up calendar, or you would like to join the Shelter Committee, please contact Barbara Deinhardt at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .