Butler’s only winter relief center likely will not have to limit its operations this winter.

The Grace Youth and Family Foundation’s Winter Relief Center, 100 Center Ave., was supposed to get about $35,000 from Butler County this year for operating costs.

However, foundation owner Bill Halle declined to sign a new contract with the county, saying the contract would have removed his organization’s right to faith-based hiring practices, signed over exclusive ownership and copyrights to the program over to the county and provided “extensive” auditing access to the county.

Because of that, the county will not give money to Halle.

Following that decision, Halle said he received donations totaling $20,000, which is a third of the center’s annual budget.

“We’re really confident that we will be able to continue that,” Halle said this morning.

He said the center’s budget is $60,000 per year, with the county providing about half and the center raising the rest.

Halle said most of the donations were local and amounted to $25 or $50, but it did receive several larger donations.

He said the donations came soon after announcing the center’s troubles with the county contract, and he said it all happened before the center began fundraising for the year. He said formal fundraising will start in about a week.

Halle noted that the center still needs to raise $40,000 to cover the rest of the budget.

Before getting these donations, Halle was going to reduce the number of people the shelter serves. But with these donations, Halle said the shelter will not have to limit its guests.