ALPENA – According to a Sunrise Mission press release on Sunday, the organization is hosting a town hall public meeting at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 18, held at the Alpena High School auditorium. Sunrise Mission also states they “will soon announce” future, regularly scheduled, town hall meetings.

The Sunrise Mission states that the purpose of the town hall meeting “is to detail how Sunrise Mission is actively implementing solutions for the rising unsheltered, homeless, and domestic violence/trauma survivor populations while outlining ways in which Alpena’s community members can help make a difference.”

According to the release, the town hall meeting will offer an opportunity for “constructive open discussion where participants may voice insights, concerns, suggestions, and work together towards solutions.”

The release states that Sunrise Mission is “drawing on 40 years of experience and expertise in providing shelter to Alpena’s most vulnerable populations.”

The organization will respond to inquiries and questions at the meeting.

Sunrise Mission further explains that the purpose of the town hall meeting is to address the “alarming escalation in the numbers of unsheltered and homeless individuals and families, including domestic abuse and trauma survivors in Alpena, and to galvanize community-driven, sustainable solutions that will serve Alpena well into the future.”

“The rate of homelessness and domestic abuse in Alpena has continued its rapid ascent,” Sunrise Mission states in the release.

According to the organization, the shelter has been maintaining a “critical maximum capacity,” providing shelter for “record numbers of women, children, families, and men experiencing unsheltered and homeless crises, as well as domestic violence and trauma.”

“We regularly shelter upwards of 15 children,” the organization adds in the release.

According to the Sunrise Mission, the town hall meeting “will specifically address” how the demand for shelter from unhoused populations is currently “exceeding the capacity of existing shelter facilities.”

For questions, contact Michelle Bailey, Sunrise Mission executive director, at (989) 356- 1277 or via email: sunrisemission.com or office@sunrisemission.com.