EAST NAPLES, Fla. - Cold weather forces emergency shelters to open across Southwest Florida.

Shelters in Collier County are already at capacity, that means the cold will likely have people sleeping on floors and even in hallways
.
Each night, 120 people stay at the St. Matthew's House. There's a waiting list of about 40 more, that are normally turned away. Tonight, however, they will all have a place to sleep.

"I'm very grateful because I'm not one for the woods, I'm not one to camp, and I'm sure not one for the cold weather," Dan says.

He's here to get out of the cold.

While St. Matthew's House can temporarily expand its capacity when cold weather strikes, they can't do it alone, and they aren't. Several people stopped by tonight to help the cause by donating blankets.

"I just thought I needed to come by and help out," Heather Morgan says.
"They are things I don't use, and so I thought why don't I give them to somebody who can use them," Deborah Cook adds.

This is the first time she's donated to St. Matthew's, but likely won't be her last.

"It makes me feel like I'm doing something that I should do," Cook says.
If this chilly weather sticks around, St. Matthew's House plans to stay open as an emergency shelter in the coming days. They will continue to accept donations of blankets, as well, both here, and at the Friendship House in Immokalee.