Cook Training Program seeks partners

From the desk of Karen O’Shannacery, Executive Director

Letter of Success

Homeless Action Week 2008

In The Community

Letter from a Volunteer – Extreme Weather Shelter

Extreme Weather Shelters

The absolute homeless are always at high health risk – poor nutrition, little sleep and fighting the effects of weather lead to a poor immune system, people get sick easily.

We operate 200+ shelter beds:

• 177 warm shelter beds 4 shelters in 3 municipalities plus
• 30 bed Extreme Weather Response shelter in Burnaby and 20 on the North Shore. 
• Drop In for the mentally ill to stay safe & warm during the day – get a nutritious meal
• Our beds are 100% full
• Last year we housed approx 5000+ individuals

It is not unusual to turn away 32 individuals in a single cold winter night, as there simply is not enough shelter beds for people, and the housing doesn’t exist that is affordable and supported, to move people out of the shelters.  Sadly, for the people we turned away we could not find any place for them to stay. When we can’t find a place, we give blankets, or prepare them to the best of our ability – all based on donations

The men and women come to us with only the clothes on their backs.  Because of the lack of shelter beds, we turn away many more.  All need warm clean winter clothing, and those who remain on the streets need sleeping bags and blankets to help them deal with the high health risk they face on the streets.  We need the public to help.

When we hear the weather is turning very cold:

• we appeal to the public for the needed blankets, sleeping bags, winter clothing to help them survive
• we coordinate with the Extreme Weather Response and work closely in tandem
• the shelters ‘hold’ people in our facilities until Extreme Weather resources open – e.g. some open at midnight.

Items most needed: men’s winter coats, wool socks and sweaters, pants, good quality sturdy shoes and boots, sleeping bags/blankets as well as hygiene items such as toothbrushes, toothpaste, combs. All items are distributed free-of-charge to appreciative homeless men and women.

Donations can be dropped off at our Drop In Centre located at 528 Powell Street, Vancouver daily, from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.