Warren police officer saves homeless family from freezing cold

WARREN, Mich. (FOX 2) - A mother and her children are sleeping in a warm place on Wednesday night all thanks to a Warren police officer who noticed the family in need during the chilly week in Metro Detroit. 

What they're saying:

Officer Bryce Moon says he knew he needed to get them shelter before a snowstorm hit.

"So I was driving past the front of the station when I noticed a woman and what appeared to be a few kids with her," he said. "They were pushing a large shopping cart full of property."

Saturday was a long day for Moon who says he just wrapped up his shift when he saw the family out in the cold. 

"I look down the street at the corner. There was another, I believe, two children with another shopping cart," he said. "I asked the mother, you know, if everything was okay? And she just immediately started crying."

Why you should care:

Moon said the mother and her 5 kids had just been evicted from a hotel and were facing homelessness. So he immediately got them inside the police station.

"I was trying to interact with the kids. I believe one of them was severely autistic," he said. "So just trying to help calm him down and keep the other kids entertained."

The officer had just taken crisis intervention training, where officers learned about all the resources and shelters available for people experiencing homelessness.

Unfortunately, Moon said getting them into a shelter for the night proved to be harder than expected.

"I called no short of 10 different places," he explained. "They all said they were full, or they couldn’t take them. So, I’m just happy we were able to get them somewhere for the night."

Once they found a church that would help near 9 Mile and Van Dyke, he was relieved.

"We were able to load all their things into our jail van," he said. Me and Officer Hopkins were able to get their items into the van, all of them, and we were able to get them to 9 Mile."

Moon says that was the last time he saw the family. He hopes they're doing okay, but he's glad he jumped into action the moment he saw them.

"Best I could do, especially with you know what just happened in Detroit with those two kids losing their lives," he said. "I couldn’t go home without knowing they were, they were somewhere at least for the night."

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Officials say if you need a place to stay warm, you can head to your local police station and explain your situation. No profits and churches are also available to help those stuck in the cold.