With the Coronavirus wreaking havoc all over the world, one extremely vulnerable population is the homeless community. While some places are not doing much to help, others are going out of their way to keep the forgotten people on the street safe during the pandemic.
This hotel that’s housing homeless people during Covid-19 didn’t expect anything in return, but one homeless man did something amazing to thank them.
The Fownes Hotel in Worchester, England, has been housing over 45 homeless people since March
It’s usually $175(USD) to stay at the upscale Fownes Hotel, but since the lockdowns of the pandemic began they’ve been housing people with nowhere to go for free. Over 45 rooms in the 60-room hotel have been occupied by their new guests, whose hotel staff says have been lovely.
“Our new guests have been lovely and grateful for the support they had been given and treat their rooms with respect. We stayed open simply because we wanted to help.” Said assistant manager Julie Merrick.
Hotel staff has even teamed with a homeless charity to learn how to better understand and care for their new guests
The charity has been hosting workshops on addictions, seeking benefits, and how they can help them through the process of future accommodations.
Their three hotel bars have been cleared out just in case, and there is no alcohol allowed on the premises while they’re housing the homeless people.
Out of gratitude, many of the homeless guests have decided to do odd-jobs around the hotel grounds, one man even built a brick patio
While some have taken up tasks like gardening, and cleaning, one former bricklayer used his skills to build something outstanding for the hotel.
Eddie Boult is a former bricklayer who fell on hard times. To thank the Fownes Hotel, he constructed a brick wall and patio that otherwise would have cost thousands of dollars.
“I did it because I was bored but also as a thank you to the staff. They’ve really looked after me.” Eddie told SWNS.
There’s an 11-person skeleton crew that’s working the hotel, with restaurant employees working 7 days to feed the homeless guests
While 15 hotel employees have been furloughed, the 11 that are still working have been putting in extra hours to help the homeless people staying there. Worker’s in the hotel restaurant work every day of the week to make sure their guests get three-course meals which are served in disposable containers to limit contact.
“We’re the only hotel in Worcester doing this. Everybody else closed their doors. My staff is very brave. They have gone above their job role, absolutely. It has brought us all closer together as a team,” Said the mother of two and assistant manager, Julie Merrick.
The grateful guests’ say they’ve been treated wonderfully by the brave and kind-hearted staff
48-year-old, Peter Swinbourne, who has been homeless for 25-years said the hotel staff and their kindness “saved” him.
“I have never slept in a double bed before,” he said. “I’m happy here—this is a five-star hotel putting up homeless people.” Said, Peter.
Terence Marriot has been staying at the Fownes Hotel for six weeks said:
“I have been well looked after. It has been excellent. The food is also excellent, I feel a lot healthier than when I came in.”
What an inspiring story, this isn’t the first time the Fownes has gone out of their way to help. They also housed 30 people for free in February, after flooding left them displaced. During this unprecedented pandemic, people that go out of their way to help those in need make all the difference!
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