Issue date: 2/20/08 Section: NEWS

Media Credit: Chase Martinez Visitors of the "Sons of Thunder" shelter, whose names wish to be withheld, spend the last days in "SOT" before it is closed Friday.

The warehouse on 217 Hickory St. that houses the Sons of Thunder homeless shelter and motorcycle ministry is nearly bare, with only books, clothing and a few couches remaining.

Sons of Thunder, established six years ago, will be closing its doors on Friday and reopening in a six-bedroom house at 2411 Fort Worth Dr. the following week.

The shelter has been unable to acquire a permit from the city of Denton that would allow it to remain open and operate as a legal homeless shelter.

"There is a permitting process and the establishment has to satisfy safety codes," said Denton Mayor Perry McNeill."There were issues with sprinklers and exit doors that they did not fix."

The renovations needed to bring the warehouse up to code would cost up to $4,000, Hackler said, and are too expensive for the shelter to undergo. She said Sons of Thunder had the idea to operate from the same warehouse as a hotel rather than a shelter.

"They chose not to pursue the establishment of a hotel there," McNeill said. "It never came to City Council."

Sons of Thunder remained open, and the director was fined $300 and threatened with a $1,000 fine if he continued to provide shelter.

"The city is not working with us," Hackler said. "They said that Denton doesn't need another homeless shelter; the Salvation Army can handle it," she said.

There is one Salvation Army shelter in Denton on 1508 E. McKinney St. It is the only legal emergency shelter in Denton.

According to a census conducted in 2007 by the Denton County Homeless Coalition, there are 280 identified homeless individuals in Denton County.

"The shelter should be larger, and more shelters should be available in the county to meet the needs of the homeless population," said Denton Salvation Army Captain Glenn Queener in a 2006 Daily article.

If Sons of Thunder had been able to acquire a permit, it would be allowed to house residents overnight. As of now, the doors open daily at 8 a.m., just after the Salvation Army closes its doors. It remains open until 11 p.m., when the Salvation Army reopens.

Several of the residents will be moving to the new location, where they will continue holding their Saturday night Bible studies.

"We talk about Jesus to anyone who wants to listen," Hackler said. "Some of them do and some of them don't. We don't shove religion down people's throats, but we are fishers of men."

The shelter's previous night manager, Bart, said Sons of Thunder plans to open a food pantry and clothing closet in its new location. He is not moving with the others, though, because he has found his own place and is trying to get a job as a groundskeeper at NT.

Bart will remain a life member of Sons of Thunder, though, and proudly wears a leather vest with the Sons of Thunder patch on the back.

The patch is a mark of membership that prospective members can receive when they study the Bible, get a job and show they are ready to make a change.

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