Cold, pandemic hurting city non-profits

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This article was published 16/02/2021 (1851 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Recent body-numbing temperatures, combined with the COVID-19 pandemic, have forced Winnipeg non-profit organizations to make do with fewer donations at the very time they need more.

Lighthouse Mission has experienced growing demand for its services: the shelter, which typically helps more than 200 people a day, has had a 43 per cent increase in emergency hamper distribution. The need for donations has risen during the extremely cold weather, operations manager Beverly Ajtay said.

“We’re seeing more people coming in not dressed for these -30 C, -40 C temperatures… needing warm clothing, boots, jackets, mitts, gloves, basic layering pieces… things we would take for granted just to put on in the morning,” she said.

Lighthouse Mission needs men’s winter jackets, mittens, gloves, boots and ski pants, as well as blankets, which are much needed by those who stay in encampments near the North End shelter.

Ajtay said donations of money and clothing items have been affected by the pandemic. The shelter has responded by making donations as contactless as possible. A separate dropoff at the rear entrance has been established for donors.

“We’ve been blessed by the donors who have been able to continue to give and support what we’re doing, which has been amazing, but we have seen some of those simple things affected,” she said.

The pandemic has had one of its biggest effects on larger fundraising events, Ajtay said.

“Our banquet was cancelled last spring because of COVID, our golf tournament in the summer, we saw a reduced attendance at because people are cautious.”

Sunshine House executive director Levi Foy said when temperatures plunge, the Centennial neighbourhood drop-in centre actually sees fewer visitors.

People staying in more central encampments or shelters may not want to venture out into the cold — or may fear losing their spot in a shelter if they do — and will choose to go without Sunshine House’s resources. The centre is one of the only “wet” drop-ins in the city, meaning visitors do not have to be sober to access services.

Lately, despite the cold, demand for services has been on the rise.

Sunshine House has clothing available for people in need, but consistently lacks men’s clothing — particularly jackets and pants for the cold weather — and also needs gently used mittens and tuques.

“When you have multiple people sharing a room in a rooming house or something, you have multiple people who more than likely don’t have access to winter clothing, all of a sudden food security needs become much greater or heightened,” he said.

The pandemic also means some guests may have lost sources of respite from the cold, Foy said.

“If they live in a building where there’s a security guard, or if they’re in a neighbourhood with a heightened police presence, the places they might have crashed or the couches of family members they might have stayed at during these very cold times, have all of a sudden become unavailable,” he said. “It causes people to make really difficult choices.”

Foy, who said he has heard of at least one person who had used Sunshine House die of exposure from the cold, finds COVID-19 has exacerbated concerns. While the centre usually accommodates between 20 and 30 people for hours — now only around 10 people can gather for brief visits.

“They have an understanding that if they stay too long, that they might be limiting somebody else’s ability to come and get something to eat and go through the clothing room,” he said.

“There’s kind of an unspoken rule among the participants that they’ll stay for an hour tops, but usually people are here from half an hour to 45 minutes. And that’s not comfortable for people. That’s what we’re seeing as a result of COVID.”

malak.abas@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: malakabas_