“Sheltering” is inspired by Isaiah 58 which states it is our spiritual duty to clothe the naked. The sculpture depicts a life-size figure being covered with a blanket by a dove, the symbol of the Holy Spirit.

In 2022, Timothy Schmalz’s sculpture “Sheltering” received a Papal Blessing by Pope Francis in St. Peter’s Square.

May 20, 2024, Macon, Georgia

Depaul USA—in partnership with Macon Housing Authority and In-Fill Housing— celebrated the opening of the Central City Apartment Complex and Phil J. and Alice Sheridan Medical Respite. Central City Apartments will provide 82 affordable apartments to Macon community members facing homelessness and housing insecurity. The Medical Respite will provide a recovery unit for those leaving Piedmont Hospital.

In honor of the opening, Tim Schmalz attended the unveiling and blessing of his statue, ‘Sheltering,’ placed in front of Depaul USA’s Daybreak Day Resource Center which is located directly next to Central City and the Respite.

Depaul USA is a national homeless services nonprofit whose mission is to end homelessness and change the lives of those affected by it. Depaul USA operates in 12 U.S. cities through a variety of services including day resource centers; case management; a free health clinic; medical respite; linkages to mental and physical health care; and affordable, transitional, and permanent housing.