You may be getting ready to leave Athens for the Thanksgiving holiday, but there’s one group who is actually trying to find a place to stay — the homeless.

Some of the homeless shelters have been filling all of their beds. Homeless shelters like Bigger Vision work hard to help people looking for shelter.

But even with 36 beds, it’s a challenge for some homeless shelters to say yes to everyone.

“Coming in at [8 a.m.] really just guarantees that they’ll get in and out of the weather,” said Ed Moore, the executive director of Bigger Vision.

Those who aren’t fortunate enough to be on of those 36 have to search elsewhere. And there’s no way to tell for sure, but some UGA students think they’ve seen some homeless people looking in places like the Miller Learning Center.

“He seemed cold and was sleeping on the bench,” said UGA student Shontel Stewart. “And so, at that point, I felt very sorry for the individual who did not have a place to stay.”

Anyone can walk into the Miller Learning Center. Although it may be centered around students, it’s still a public space.

“Obviously we’re a public institution, and we welcome anybody who wants to use our resources,” said Jean Cleveland, UGA Libraries’ Communication Officer. “Our priority are students, faculty and staff.”

Unless there is a security risk, Cleveland said anyone can enjoy whatever the MLC has to offer. If there ever was any concern about who is in the MLC, security officials can ask people to show their UGA ID after midnight. If individuals fail to have what officials would consider a valid reason for being in the building, they may be asked to leave.

The MLC will be open during the break from 7 a.m.-5 p.m. on Monday through Wednesday and will be closed on Thanksgiving Day and Friday.

Reported by Kendall Trammell