As a lot of us are still clinging to these last couple of weeks of summer, the winter months are already on the minds of people working at our local homeless shelters.
They're working to make sure they have the winter gear they'll need as the population in their shelters rise.
Thanks to a Boise musician, they're getting some much-needed help.
At first glance, you may not know what to make of Bill Gerst, or "Mill Bill" known by his fans.
"I got some tattoos," said Gerst. "I don't dress in a business suit, so they might see me as some kind of thug or some kind of gangster."
Underneath that tough exterior and the perceived lifestyle of a local hip hop artist is a man who has finally found his way.
"We've lived in homeless shelters for numerous reasons," said Gerst. "I've lived in the foster care system so it was pretty rough growing up. I understand the difficulties."
Most of his life, the obstacles he faced were out of his control.
"It was tough and it was scary," Gerst said. "There was abuse and physical abuse in my home and both of my parents were alcoholics. The direction I was given and the reality that I grew up in it was acceptable and it was understood."
With drugs and alcohol surrounding him as a child, later on in life he turned to those vices to escape his reality.
"A lot of people ask me about the whole prison experience," said Gerst. "I'll be honest I wouldn't take it back. I believe that it gave me a lot of time to find myself and to realize what I want to do in the world."
Gerst has been clean for 17 months after landing behind bars for a DUI. Now, he's giving back to people who are in a place he knows all too well.
"I understand that frustration, I understand that embarrassment, I understand that need for help," said Gerst.
As the son of a single mother who struggled year after year, he knows the need for help at shelters like City Light and organizations like the Women and Children's Alliance.
"It was kind of embarrassing to get second-hand clothes and it was kind of an embarrassing thing to ask for help," said Gerst.
He's raising money to buy brand new jackets, hoodies, and coats for the families that use those resources.
Alex Parks with City Light says when it comes to donations, they are careful with what they accept.
"Anything with stains or holes or things that look really ratty we don't keep," said Parks. "We really find the importance of our men, women, and children of feeling good because sometimes when you're in homelessness you don't feel good about it and if you're wearing ratty clothes you definitely don't feel well. We really try to dress our people like how we want to dress. Not just a hand-me-down T-shirt or a jacket that has rips on it that's not warm."
When all is said and done, Gerst hopes to be able to buy between 75 and 100 of those essential winter items.
"It's not like a grand scale but it's a start and I think that anything is better than nothing," Gerst said.
It's something he hopes will make his late mother proud.
"All of this stems from her and it's all for her," Gerst said. "She was such a giving person, sometimes to the point that she would give more than she had."