What does a hot shower mean to you? An
invigorating start to the day? Rejuvenation
after hard work or play?
What if you didn't have easy access to that
shower – or a home to call your own? What
if you had to go days or longer without the
chance to clean up?
"Something as simple as a shower can change
the course of someone's life," said Taylor Reed,
28, a volunteer with the Huntsville branch
of ShowerUp, a nonprofit providing free
showers for anyone who needs one, especially
homeless residents.
Whether it's to be clean in preparation for a
job interview or to be around one's family, it
makes a big difference, he said.
ShowerUp started in Nashville in 2016. Reed
saw the program in action when Nashville
volunteers brought their shower trailer to
Huntsville in November 2019.
"People loved the showers and wanted to
know how they could get another shower."
Reed set out to provide the service here on
a regular basis. And he had help!
"Before we could launch a fundraising
campaign, an anonymous donor contacted
ShowerUp in Nashville to find out how we
could bring the service to Huntsville. ey
were told how much it would cost, and the
donor wrote a check."
Since May 1, 2020, ShowerUp Huntsville has
provided more than 1,000 hot showers. No
identification is required.
– free, hot showers
wash recipients
in love and hope.
ShowerUp
I N O U R C O M M U N I T I E S
8
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r e d f c u.o r g
Redstone's Jamie
Wiswosser-Holt
assists a man as
he heads into the
ShowerUp Huntsville
mobile shower.
