Annie Fish has always believed in making others, especially the most vulnerable, feel welcome and valued.
She and her siblings were raised in Oswego on this concept of “radical hospitality” by their parents, Daniel and Kathy Fish. So it’s not all that surprising their 29-year-old daughter carried it into adulthood, earning a master’s degree in social work, and concentrating her efforts on the homeless, including a few years on staff at Hesed House in Aurora.
But now, as executive director of the Aurora Winter Warming Center, Fish is even more up close and very personal with those she has long felt called to serve.
It’s a fulfilling job, for sure. But not an easy one.
When I caught up with Fish on Tuesday morning, she had just finished a 14-hour shift, overseeing about 45 men and a half dozen women in this shelter that, although desperately needed this time of year, was challenging to open.
You might recall the headlines from a couple years ago when Wesley United Methodist Church stepped up to host the warming center after a security problem arose when someone with a gun came to the city’s previous warming center location at the Aurora Transportation Center.
The church became a respite from the proverbial storm on an emergency basis and took on the role again last winter after an agreement with the city, but was not able to do so this year.
Aldermen were more than willing to provide $135,000 in funding for Becoming Oswego Church to operate this current shelter. But “it was a huge fight” to find a location, said Fish, who recalls touring a couple dozen possibilities that never came to fruition because of neighborhood NIMBY concerns.
The current warming center, near Hesed House at 712 S. River St. in the city, was OK’d by the Aurora City Council in November. Five days later, as temperatures plunged, the doors were opened at this former city office and since then, said Fish, “we’ve been rushing all season to catch up.”
While this location was “a last resort,” she describes this winter haven as “more dignified” and a “place where people feel safe and welcomed,” adding that “the guys love it because they can wake up to the sunrise over the river.”
Mi Vida Loca Cafe Chef Chris Schwarz prepares dinner recently at the Aurora Winter Warming Center. (Annie Fish)
In addition to dinner – transported from Mi Vida Loca Cafe’s state of the art kitchen in Aurora and prepared by culinary chef Chris Schwarz – guests receive breakfast in the morning and are sent out for the day – usually to the library or train station – with sandwich lunches.
A host of valuable partners also provide services where needed, including Hesed House, Association for Individual Development, ECHO Development Center, Aurora Mutual Aid, Airtight Security and Aurora’s food pantries and community fridges.
While praising a city “that really has stepped up,” Fish noted “we are always struggling for volunteers,” and could also use food donations such as milk, bread, granola bars and oatmeal packets.
The warming shelter, currently decked out with Christmas and Hanukkah decorations, is open from 7 p.m.-7 a.m. when temperatures are at or below 32 degrees for at least three hours. It will also be operating during the day on Dec. 25 and Jan. 1, with special games and activities planned.
“This is my purpose,” said Fish, noting that while all the coordination it takes to run the shelter can get “tiring,” she could easily “sit with the guests all day long.”
It’s that radical hospitality she credits to her late father, who passed away six years ago, and “mama bear” mother, both of whom taught their children – including Patrick Fish, pastor of Becoming Oswego Church – “what it means to be hospitable, to care for your neighbors and open your door to someone in need.”
The new Aurora Winter Warming Center provides cots for overnight stays, as well as three meals, when the temperature is at or below 32 degrees. (Annie Fish)
When I tried to describe Annie Fish as an angel on Earth, she told me she’d only accept that description if I included the word “team.”
“She doesn’t just run a warming center,” said Hesed House Executive Director Joe Jackson. “Annie creates a space where people are treated with dignity, safety and humanity at a time when they need it most. That space and her work are a reflection of her enormous heart and caring soul.”
For Fish, it all comes down to “where my heart is.”
How can you not feel it swell “when you see guests crying as they bite into that first warm meal or put on that warm jacket,” she asked, her own voice wavering with emotion.
Or when you hear a phone call from a young man to his mother, telling her that he’s “‘at the shelter again and I am safe.”
“We get to witness a lot of cool human moments,” Fish added, “that remind us of why we do what we do.”
dcrosby@tribpub.com
