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Homelessness on the rise

Debra Fieguth
Special to ChristianWeek

They sleep on park benches, on heating grates and under bridges in Canada’s cities. If they are lucky, they can “couch surf” at friends’ homes when necessary. But when winter plunges temperatures far below zero and snow is the only blanket available, the homeless need to find a better option.

Homelessness is a growing problem in Canada. A census taken in Toronto last spring counted more than 5,000 homeless people; in Vancouver the numbers have doubled in the last few years; in Calgary and Edmonton, homelessness has soared. And it’s not just single men and drifters who are homeless anymore. An increasing number of families, including the working poor, are without proper housing.

The Salvation Army has been providing shelter for the homeless for many years. But shelter itself is just the beginning.

“We try to deal with people that are homeless from a holistic point of view,” explains Andrew Burditt, territorial public relations director for Canada and Bermuda. “We try to help them address their problems.”

As recently retired Major Samuel Fame puts it, “food and shelter are gateways to detox and treatment.” Major Fame spent 15 years directing the Harbour Light program in Vancouver, where 40 per cent of the 95 employees are former Harbour Light residential clients. “They came as addicts and now they’re working there,” says Burditt.

A new Vancouver program called Breaking the Cycle of Homelessness provides the chronically homeless with a range of services and educational tools, including help with anger management, conflict resolution, job skills, cooking lessons and other assistance. “We really try and address the entire person so they can provide for themselves,” says Burditt.

In Toronto, the Salvation Army is currently developing a project called City Core, which will eventually replace the Harbour Light facility there and offer more help to the homeless and needy.

Meeting spiritual needs is part of the picture, but it isn’t always direct. Clients “don’t have to attend church services,” Burditt points out. Sometimes they just need someone to lean on when life seems unbearable. “We should never underestimate the power of presence,” Burditt says. “Spiritual care is about being there for somebody.”

Often homelessness is compounded by other factors, including job instability, domestic issues, physical or mental illness, substance abuse or other things. The Army encourages clients to look at their own lives and work out what needs to change. Instead of saying “let me fix you,” staff help them identify their concerns and address them directly.

• Homelessness is a life-or-death issue in winter. Human beings cannot survive outdoors overnight in temperatures colder than –15 C, yet beds are at such a premium across Canada that temporary shelters sometimes have to turn people away. The Salvation Army opens emergency shelters or lays down mats on the floors of existing facilities when necessary.
• A key cause of homelessness is the shrinking market of affordable housing. In Calgary, for example, half the homeless population have jobs but cannot afford housing. And in Vancouver, lack of affordable housing could lead to a tripling of the homeless population by 2010.
• Homelessness across Canada has reached an estimated 100,000 people. As Canada’s largest non-governmental provider of social services, The Salvation Army operates 50 shelter and hostel programs, providing over a third of all shelter beds—some 5,000—in Canada every night.