The holiday spirit was expected to be in abundance on Christmas Day at St. Andrew's United Church in Port Moody, where up to 30 people were to enjoy a turkey dinner and a hot breakfast after spending the night on a mat on the basement floor.
Served up by volunteers and clients of the Hope for Freedom Society (HFFS), some of whom may have been homeless themselves in the past, the meal was full of traditional delights, including turkey, ham and scalloped potatoes, and there was also music as well as gifts from thoughtful donors.
"It's a hard time of year for a lot of people and I think our clients are no exception," said Andrea Corrigan, an HFFS volunteer and food co-ordinator, "but they seem to be in good spirits and are happy to have somewhere to go."
Dozens of people have been spending nights at the church in recent weeks and on one recent night, 37 people showed up - but there was only room for just 30.
"We had to turn them away," said Rob Thiessen, HFFS managing director, who said the higher numbers are putting a strain on staff, church and community volunteers, and resources, but "we're getting it done."
Below: Rob Thiessen, managing director Hope for Freedom Society.
There is no clear explanation for the surge because overall Metro Vancouver's homeless population has been relatively stable but Thiessen said people are coming to the Tri-Cities from other regions where shelters are full, such as Maple Ridge, where the Salvation Army runs Caring Place, which has 25 shelter beds available plus 15 beds of transition housing.
"It's apparent to us over last number of years that Tri-City has been able to dramatically grind down its homeless population where surrounding communities have not," Thiessen said. "We are surrounded by homelessness in communities. It is now filling the gaps that we've made in lowering ours, were going to see movement from time to time."
He credits the drop in the Tri-Cities' homeless population in recent years to the hard work of two outreach workers who manage to find homes for some people or are able to move those struggling with addiction into HFFS recovery programs.
HFFS runs six recovery houses for men and one for women, with a total of 75 beds for people who want to kick their addictions (clients pay a per-diem rate with income assistance, personal funding or health care plans but 15% of funds are raised through donations to cover the costs of people who have no money). Thiessen said it's not enough for the region just to shuffle its homeless population from place to place. Ultimately, the root causes of the problem need to be addressed.
"Just slapping up shelters is not necessarily the answer," Thiessen said. "I think it's important, it's a good triage stop-gap" but he says a more thoughtful approach not just a short-term solution is needed.
"Our main goal is get them off the street, not to shelter them and feed them," he said, noting that outreach workers have found housing for 25 people since the bridge shelter opened on Nov. 1.
But for those who still haven't been able to make the transition and for whom life life is a struggle, there is a warm bed and a hot meal at St. Andrew's United, which has become a true sanctuary, in the best tradition of Christmas.
