There is a Christmas tree in YWCA's Sojourner's Shelter for Homeless Women & Families.
It's decorated with tinsel and ornaments and lit by colored lights. And on Christmas morning, there was a pile of presents so large they had to push back some of the furniture that was already in the room.
"This is the magic room," said Margaret Taylor, the executive director of Sojourner's. "This is the room where their eyes are going to light up and you're going to have some that are crying because they're so excited about the presents that they get."
The presents are donated by members of the community. For one morning the kids at Sojourner's get a chance to forget their circumstances, to feel the same joy that kids feel around the world.
But of course, the homelessness doesn't exactly go away.
"The holidays are a time when people are thinking of home," said Marilyn Wrenn, communications director for the YWCA. "That's a focus of the holidays, and when you're in a situation where you don't have a home, that makes you more conscious of the situation."
That consciousness works both ways. Around the holidays, the various groups that aid the homeless see their largest increase in donations.
"Around the holidays especially, it's harder to say it's not my responsibility," said Kay Albright, the pastor of Bridges of Grace United Church of Christ, who works at Manna Meal.
Many of these organizations are able to give food, clothes and toys to the needy during the holidays, but come March and April, they're left wondering what happened to all those donations.
"It should be like the holidays all year round," Albright said.
Sojourner's could use support year round.
"It's enough to be in a shelter during a holiday, so therefore we try to make it as special as possible," Taylor said. "But we also want people to remember that holidays come once a year. That we have 30-some kids in here every day of that year. Their support is needed not just during this time, but all throughout the year."
Steven Garnes, who works in the Crossroad's Men's Shelter at Union Mission, noticed the same thing.
"I know this is the time of year that we give back to others," Garnes said. "But that should be every day."
Garnes speaks from experience. He was homeless and addicted to drugs for years. Every year, the holidays were a depressing time for him.
"I don't think anyone on the holidays really wants to be alone," Garnes said.
Garnes said that being around people and knowing that others still cared about him really helped out during that holiday season.
But that influx of support during the holidays can sometimes leave pockets empty in months where people aren't as focused on giving.
"We need food all year round," said David Bennett, who works at Covenant House. "So sometimes, in July, we're hurting for food."
While Crossroads and Sojourner's tend to see more people in their shelters during the winter months and holidays, at Manna Meal, which serves free breakfast and lunch every day, often to around 400 people, Thanksgiving and Christmas are the slowest days of the year.
Albright attributes that to the fact that many of the people who come to Manna Meal are food insecure, meaning they don't know where they'll get their next meal, but not homeless. So with all of the charity around the holidays, people are still able to have something to eat on Christmas and don't need to go to Manna Meal.
On Thanksgiving, Manna Meal had 156 people, and Albright expects something similar on Christmas. She said that she has a core group of people who come to eat no matter what.
Others who are homeless are sometimes able to find a place to go during the holidays, either because one of their friends offers them a place at their table, or someone in their family does.
But for those who are left without a place to go on Christmas, the shelters do their best to make it a positive experience.
"Even though this is a temporary facility," Taylor said. "It is home."
Reach Daniel Desrochers at dan.desrochers@wvgazettemail.com, 304-348-4886 or follow @drdesrochers on Twitter.