Night café season starts - churches open for homeless people

From Friday, Dresden's church congregations will once again be opening their doors to homeless people at night. During the night café season, which lasts until March 31, they will offer a first point of contact, a place to retreat and a place to rest in addition to the city's homeless shelters, as announced by Diakonie Dresden. "It is important to open up spaces that warm people's bodies and souls," said Gerd Grabowski, spokesperson for the Night Café Coordination Group.

Each weekday, a different church makes its rooms available. Guests are served drinks, a hot meal and breakfast together. There is also the opportunity to take a shower and do laundry.

The first night café opened in 1995 on the initiative of students at the Protestant University of Social Work in Dresden. Since then, the city's Christian parishes have organized this offer across denominational boundaries in the winter months.