Sleep Out surpasses goal
Article content
In the hours before her agency's homelessness fundraiser, Sandie Sidsworth got a sad reminder of what it was all about.
Sidsworth is executive director of the Canadian Mental Health Association's Hastings-Prince Edward branch. It owns three homes in Belleville for people who are homeless or at risk of losing their homes.
“I turned three people away today because we were full,” Sidsworth said Friday.
The homes accept people on a first-come, first-served basis so long as the applicants qualify.
Last year 510 people were also turned away because of the lack of space.
“That's huge,” Sidsworth said.
It's why 114 people huddled in sleeping bags and cardboard boxes in Market Square Friday night as the temperature dropped below the freezing mark.
They raised $13,320, surpassing organizers' goal of $10,000. Sidsworth said all funds will be spent on maintenance.
“Last year was cold. This year I think it's going to be a lot better,” said Belleville's Sara Hart. She and her husband, Stan, were making a shelter for the third year with their son, Ozzy, who turned 12 Friday.
“It's something we can do as a family,” Sara said. “It's an easy way to raise funds.”
Five newcomers came from Loyalist College's child and youth worker program. But they came expecting to find an available box. All were in use, but the students said they weren't concerned.
“We're the troupers,” said Brenda Galt.
“I'm not planning on sleeping,” said Jennifer Desjardine, who said they would join in activities planned for the night.
“Homelessness is not something that's talked about as much as it probably should be,” said Shelley Ayres, saying she and the group, which also included Jessica Bell and Kaitlynn Katchabaw, wanted a realistic experience of being without shelter.
Sleep Out organizers tried to educate this year's cold campers about homelessness, an issue they say is widely misunderstood.
They used snowballs to demonstrate the distribution of wealth among Canadians. Sidsworth said three out of 10 hold 90 per cent of it.
Sidsworth said the night's boxes were more symbolic than realistic: homelessness is often invisible. The homeless include people who sit in coffee shops for hours to those living cars to others who move between the homes of friends in family.
“Homelessness wears a million faces,” she said.
“They don't choose this life. You're homeless because of life circumstances beyond your control.”
She said the causes, from mental health to job loss, are just as diverse as the people affected.
To learn more about the association, visit the website at hastings-cmha.org or call 613-969-8874. The office is in the Community Resource Centre Quinte building, 41 Octavia St. at Catharine Street, west of Coleman Street.
luke.hendry@sunmedia.ca