Ray of Hope and Sundown Shelter offer resources and rest

Published 2:50 pm Monday, November 24, 2025

The Auburn Food Bank has been a pillar of South King County charity, providing food for those in need, especially in these last few months where federal SNAP benefits and Medicaid coverage have been in peril.

Along with food, this nonprofit also provides other services in the last few years, like Ray of Hope Day Resource Center and the Sundown Overnight Shelter.

Debbie Christian, executive director at the Auburn Food Bank, had been doing cold weather sheltering in Auburn over 10 years ago and then worked on a homeless task force to create a shelter within the city.

“The answer at that point was really no, we didn’t have the wherewithal to do it. It was a lot of money and it just wasn’t going to be something you could pop up tomorrow,” said Christian of the Ray of Hope origin. “And then, Valley Cities’ director at the time came to the mayor and said, ‘You know, I’ve got a piece of property, if you guys can put this modular pod on it like a construction office space pod, maybe Debbie can run a homeless shelter for us.’”

It took a lot of work and a lot of money, but the center was opened in September 2017, and then six months later, the Sundown Overnight Shelter was opened for those who needed a place to sleep.

Ray of Hope and Sundown are both located in the same vicinity of the Auburn Food Bank, with the former having around 60 people coming in and out of it every day, and up to 45 people people sleeping overnight. The organization even allows for cars to safely and securely park in the parking lot.

”We have about 20 people that are sleeping outside in their car because usually, if you’ve got a car, you want to stay with it, protect it, and you might have an animal, so staying with their car is the right thing for them,” said Christian.

Due to the building’s lease, animals are not allowed within the shelter, but guests are allowed to keep them in their vehicle.

“They can have pets in their car and they’re not supposed to even be walking their pets in the parking lot, but they can take them down to the park, which is a really easy walk,” she said.

For those sleeping overnight in the shelter, each person is provided with a cot, chair, rug and some space for personal items. The majority of people who sleep over are men, with a small percentage being women, whose cots are separated into their own row of the dormitory-style space. Every night, the shelter has three overnight workers who ensure safety and bathroom access for the people using the parking lot.

“Our navigators here in town that work for the City of Auburn really are trying to keep people out of the bush,” said Christian. “Shelters around the county have closed […] and we end up being the only shelter in South King County.”

The overnight shelter is open seven nights a week from 9 p.m. to 7 a.m., and during the day, the Ray of Hope drop-in center is open.

Ray of Hope offers laundry services, showers, food, assistance with obtaining identification, finding work, connecting to services and resources, safety and just a quiet place to pass the time indoors and out of the elements.

Donations are always welcome for the Auburn Food Bank, Ray of Hope and Sundown, including monetary donations that can be made at theauburnfoodbank.org/donate, via Venmo @Auburn-Foodbank, and in-person at 2804 Auburn Way North, Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m., which is also when food and item donations can be dropped off.

Other community drop-off sites include the Safeway parking ot at 101 Auburn Way South; the Auburn Library at 1102 Auburn Way South; the Auburn Senior Activity Center at 808 Ninth Street Southeast; and Rio Verde Mobile Estates Clubhouse at 1402 22nd Street Northeast.