It was a cold winter night in 1985 when Father Charles Strobel invited the unhoused people sleeping in the church parking lot inside his parish. That act was the seed that one of Nashville’s most well-known shelters — Room In The Inn — grew from.

Strobel died over the weekend at the age of 80.

In a video posted to the Room In The Inn YouTube a few months ago, Strobel reflected on his legacy.

“Over the past 36 years, I’ve used many images to describe the importance of Room In The Inn,” Strobel said. “I’ve described the program as a sanctuary from the violence of the streets, or Ellis Island for urban refugees.”

Thousands of people have found shelter through Room In The Inn, and have accessed workforce training and even permanent housing help through its programming.

“Today, I join my fellow Nashvillians in mourning the passing of Father Charles Strobel,” Mayor John Cooper said. “His lifelong advocacy for the poor and homeless was a shining example to all of us of how to lift up those less fortunate than us.”