In frigid weather Evanston library social worker helps assist homeless population
Justine Janis
As frigid air temperatures and wintry conditions move into the area for the season  a key part of the work that Justine Janis does at the Evanston Public Library becomes even more critical: working with homeless individuals.
"As it started getting colder there were new faces  new people coming in " said  Justine Janis  an employee of Presence Behavioral Health who is assigned to the main library in downtown Evanston .
Since then  she 's become a go-to for librarians and other staff who typically are the first contact for patrons as they enter the halls of the library  whether in need for a place to warm up or assistance in another way.
At a training in October  where  Janis  discussed the needs of and best ways to communicate with homeless patrons  staff described  Janis  as a lynch pin who can help them connect visitors in need with the public and social services that can help them.
About 25 libraries nationwide employ social workers  and the small-but-growing group holds a regular conference call to discuss the issues they're facing and brainstorm ways to address them  among other concerns   Janis  said.
But it's harder to help homeless patrons when there are limited overnight shelters in Evanston to refer them to   Janis  said.  She  hopes the interfaith group will consider opening on nights that drop to 20 degrees  but knows finding volunteers to staff those overnight shifts is hard.
As frigid air temperatures and wintry conditions move into the area for the season  a key part of the work that [TGT] does at the Evanston Public Library becomes even more critical: working with homeless individuals.
"As it started getting colder there were new faces  new people coming in " said  Justine Janis  an employee of Presence Behavioral Health who is assigned to the main library in downtown Evanston .
Since then  [TGT] 's become a go-to for librarians and other staff who typically are the first contact for patrons as they enter the halls of the library  whether in need for a place to warm up or assistance in another way.
At a training in October  where  Janis  discussed the needs of and best ways to communicate with homeless patrons  staff described  Janis  as a lynch pin who can help them connect visitors in need with the public and social services that can help them.
About 25 libraries nationwide employ social workers  and the small-but-growing group holds a regular conference call to discuss the issues they're facing and brainstorm ways to address them  among other concerns   Janis  said.
But it's harder to help homeless patrons when there are limited overnight shelters in Evanston to refer them to   Janis  said.  She  hopes the interfaith group will consider opening on nights that drop to 20 degrees  but knows finding volunteers to staff those overnight shifts is hard.