BULLITT COUNTY, Ky. — In downtown Shepherdsville, makeshift shelters sit on the banks of the Salt River.
On any given night, 50 people, including women and children, sleep under the stars in Bullitt County.
"It's the most at-risk population within our county. It's kind of the heaviest on our hearts," Joe Bohannon said.
He's part of Bullitt County Housing First. Its mission is to end homelessness in the county.
Last month, he spent two weeks outside in the elements to draw attention to the need for more resources. Now, he says, help is on the way.
Mercy Hill Church plans to open its doors Wednesday as the county's first - and only - white flag, low barrier shelter. For the rest of the winter if temperatures dip below freezing anyone will be welcome to a hot meal and a place to sleep.
"We've had almost a revival if you would of organizations and great things happening," Carl Rogers told WHAS11.
Rogers runs a transitional housing program in the county but says there isn't any stable homeless shelter.
He's worked for the past three years to get a low barrier, white flag shelter up and running and now has even bigger ideas.
"We're hoping to keep the idea and take it to another location and carry it across the year because emergency shelter is needed."
Progress is being made, but Rogers and Bohannon know they have to start with the first step and they believe the county is heading in the right direction by protecting its most vulnerable.
"Our hope is that this shelter concept right here, the low bar shelter concept, will pull people out of the woods, out under the bridge and the unheated cars and give them a place to go to," Rogers said.
The Mercy Hill Church will open at 8 p.m. Wednesday.
Contact reporter Robert Bradfield at rbradfield@whas11.com. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook.
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