MOUNT VERNON — The Winter Sanctuary Homeless Shelter Board of Trustees has announced the hiring of its first Executive Director, Julie Miller.
Miller is currently the Health Commissioner with Knox Public Health where she has worked for the past 11 years. She will retire from Knox Public Health on July 1, 2022. Miller stepped away from the Winter Sanctuary Board of Trustees after 8 years to apply for the Executive Director position.
“I appreciate and am excited about the opportunity to serve the Winter Sanctuary and our homeless friends in Knox County,” Miller said.
The Winter Sanctuary Board of Trustees feel the need for an executive director is due to the growth of homelessness and sheltering needs in Knox County, the concern for availability of affordable housing, the need for expanded community partnerships, the need to bring support to our current shelter staff, and the need for enhanced strategic direction.
In her role as Executive Director, Miller will work directly with the Winter Sanctuary Board of Trustees and the shelter’s Operations Director and Advocate, Joe Springer, as well as other paid staff and volunteers of the shelter.
“In this new role, I will be working on collecting additional data on homelessness and housing issues in our community, work with our community partners who serve the same populations and are concerned about housing and in general assess the need for sheltering services & resources in Knox County,” Miller said.
“I am also excited about speaking to and working directly with our friends who are homeless to gather their thoughts on what we as a community may do better to provide needed resources.”
The Winter Sanctuary Board has outlined some additional goals for the new Executive Director which include strategic planning, staff development and communication and collaboration with community stakeholders.
The Winter Sanctuary Board of Trustees has also seen some changes in Board membership in 2022 with the leave of long-term Board President, Dave Perry and the naming of Rev. Rachel Harrison, as the new Board President.
The purpose of the Winter Sanctuary Emergency Homeless Shelter is to provide emergency, temporary housing for individuals November through April each year.
The Winter Sanctuary also provides support in the form of guidance, resources, education, and advocacy in order to enable our guests to succeed in finding permanent housing.
If you have questions or would like more information about the Winter Sanctuary please or would like to speak to Ms. Miller about the homeless issue in our community please call the shelter at 740-392-9277.
