Believe it or not, attendance can drop at homeless shelters when the weather gets worse.

“Sometimes, on the very coldest of nights, our attendance actually goes down,” said Lynn Shaw, Associate Pastor at Emmanuel Church of the Nazarene. “People feel bad for them, friends are willing to let them couch surf — that’s not always the case, but some times that does happen.”

Since December, the Emmanuel Church of the Nazarene and St. Patrick’s Church have alternated housing the “Nights of Hospitality,” which open the churches' doors up to Wareham’s homeless.

In that time, organizers have seen anywhere from three to 12 people a night in attendance.

Chuck McCullough, parishioner and senior warden at the Church of the Good Shepherd, said he thought numbers were down so far this year. His church and the Emmanuel Assembly of God also alternate supplying volunteers and supplies to the other two shelters/churches.

He said that in the recent week they hosted, there was a low of three and a high of seven people staying at the shelter.

“In past years, we’ve had as as many as 14,” said McCullough, noting an average of about seven or eight in past years. “We’re not sure if that’s good news or not. That we don’t have the answer to.”

Shaw said that while hosting the nights from January 4 to 10, the Emmanuel Church of the Nazarene saw as few as four and as many as 10 utilizing the shelter, with 12 people total over the course of the week.

“Every single night is completely unpredictable with this demographic,” she explained, saying that an event like the Super Bowl can also have an effect on turnouts. “You really can’t predict. It’s difficult for us every single night — how many meals we need to prepare — we truly never know.”

Shaw said the people they see at the shelter are not always what others picture them to be.

“Every night, we pretty much see at least one person from every part of the spectrum,” she said. “It’s a mixed bag.”

Shaw said some with mental health issues and substance abuse issues do utilize the shelters, but more and more, they’re seeing hard-working people that are just struggling to make ends meet.

(A lot of people) assume that most of the people who come are drunk,” she said. “That is not always the case. People are coming in not having used any substance — not even one drink under their belts. There really is no norm. There’s a broad range of needs.”

McCullough said it takes several volunteers to host the “Nights of Hospitality,” and the facilities are well-suited to those attending.

“They’re absolutely super facilities and well-protected,” he said.

The buildings have to be up to code, with fire alarms, proper egress, and more taken into account, and they also must have kitchen facilities to feed the patrons.

“It takes a lot of folks,” he said.

Father John Sullivan of St. Patrick’s Church said they’d been hosting the nights for the past four years, and he’s continued to see an average about seven patrons per night over the course of that time.

“It’s gone smoothly,” he said of this season’s nights, noting a need for more participation locally.

“We’re trying to expand to more churches. If we could get as many as we can involved, that would be great.”

Future Nights of Hospitality are scheduled as follows:

January 25-31 – St. Patrick’s Roman Catholic Church (84 High St. – 508-295-2411)

February 1-7 – Emmanuel Church of the Nazarene (6 Rogers Ave. – 508-295-9268)

February 8-14 – St. Patrick’s Roman Catholic Church

February 15-21 – Emmanuel Church of the Nazarene

February 22-28 – St. Patrick’s Roman Catholic Church

March 1-14 – Emmanuel Church of the Nazarene

March 15-21 – St. Patrick’s Roman Catholic Church

Men, women, and families are welcome, and bedding, dry socks, dinner and breakfast are provided. The locations are open every night from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m.