Northbridge, MASS--

A Northbridge church is opening its doors to people who have nowhere to go to beat the heat.

“Come on by. Put your feet up,”  Rev. Ethan Drutchas of Village Congregational Church said. “Enjoy your afternoon a bit more than you will out there.”

Village Congregational Church is teaming up with the Blackstone Valley Emergency Shelter to open a private cooling center, specifically for the area’s unhoused community.

“We have people that are living in cars. Families that are driving around,” Leslie Reichert, CEO of Blackstone Valley Emergency Shelter said.  “Once they run out of gas or whatever, they’re just sleeping in this extensive heat.”

Homeless individuals and their families are encouraged to seek relief in three of the church’s classrooms on the hottest of days.

“We have a nursey open for our youngest guests. Then we have sort of a sitting room where people can charge their cellphones, we have a little charging station,” Drutchas said.  “We have another room with bean bags and a larger television which folks can use to stream on YouTube, whatever. Just sort of relax and do what most of us do on hot days like this.”

BVES usually operates warming shelters in the winter, but this year they pledged to stay open year-round to support a growing number of people in need of shelter.

“There’s a core of four or five that are in the neighborhood. There’s another 20 or more that live in an encampment that’s close and then of course, people that we don’t even know about,”  Reichert  said.

Organizers say the summer plan is still a work in progress, but they’re hoping to open as much as they can with help from volunteers.

“Our initial plan was to open on days the National Weather Service issues sort of emergencies. However, like we’ve learned with the warming shelter, just because it’s not below freezing, doesn’t mean the weather or conditions aren’t still really hard on people.” Drutchas said.  “So, our long-term goal is to be open on days above 90 where it can become medically significant for people.”

July 25 marked the first time this summer the cooling shelter opened its doors.