Nightingale has water, electricity, and now wi-fi!!

By Blake Burrell • July 20, 2026

Over the past two years, the Nightingale Community has been improved through a series of infrastructure upgrades that have made daily life for community members more comfortable, connected, and supportive. The community is now a space with reliable water, electricity, and internet. These utility upgrades have made a big difference. 

In the spring of 2025, the Nightingale community went through a major utility upgrade, bringing dependable water and electricity to the site and reorganizing the community with an improved electrical grid. This allowed for a wonderful kitchen, common room, and shower facilities to be added to the property. Candace remarked about the upgrades, sharing, “I live with severe fatigue; even everyday tasks take more energy than they do for most people. Having electricity, a safe place to sleep, showers, a full kitchen, and a comfortable community space meant I wasn’t using all of my energy just trying to survive. Instead, I could focus on building a routine, taking care of myself, and preparing for work.” These resources have helped our community members stabilize and work towards their goals related to stability, employment, and housing. 

Garret says, “Nightingale is in a very nice neighborhood,” and “the outdoor shower is a very nice luxury, as well as having electricity to my wigwam. I feel very fortunate to be here.”

In 2026, Community Supported Shelters entered into a contract with Hunter Communications to install internet infrastructure at the Nightingale community, providing stable access to Wi-Fi across the site. This access has allowed community members to stay connected with family and services, search for housing and employment, access entertainment, and use their cell phones more reliably. Dan remarked that the “clean environment and positive vibes with electricity, showers, kitchen, TV room, and a garden makes me feel like I'm at home.” To many, “Nightingale is a place of rumbling calm, a home to us now,” CB shared, “We all depend on it.” 

These resources are the building blocks to community, and beyond meeting basic needs, these improvements have supported movie nights, the creation of delicious community meals, helped one member compose music for a local band, and enabled another to complete and publish a personal memoir.

In the season to come, we hope to make continued improvements, such as the installation of a washer and dryer, purchase or donation of a commercial fridge and freezer for our kitchen, and the development of a rainwater catchment system to supplement our community garden.

While utilities do increase our monthly operating expenses, they are an essential investment in the health, well-being, and success of everyone who calls Nightingale home. If you would like to help keep water, electricity, and wifi running at our site, please consider donating using the button below. 

Consider donating to support our operational costs: 

• $25 pays for a basic repair
• $50 pays for a week's worth of gas for the Nightingale commuter car
• $75 pays for our internet bill
• $100 pays for bathroom supplies and toiletries 
• $150 pays for a garbage and recycling bill
• $200 pays for huts supplies, heaters, and landscaping equipment
• $800 pays utilities for water, electricity, and heat bill
• $2,500 pays for site infrastructure, electrical equipment, fence maintenance, and plumbing needs or project basis
• $5,000 pays for operating expenses and personnel who help manage our shelter, workforce programs, and get people housed
  

But wait, that's not all!

Read more about our exciting Nightingale updates: