A winter shelter was in operation at St. Peters Roman Catholic Church for a fifth consecutive year, serving 4,050 for the 2022/2023 winter months.  (Jordan Davidson/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By Jordan Davidson

full house

‘Everyone working together:’ over 15,000 shelter spaces used in Nanaimo during winter months

Apr 12, 2023 | 5:20 AM

NANAIMO — Shelter and warming centres across the mid-Island were kept very busy this winter, with over 15,000 visits through the year’s coldest months.

The start of November through the end of March typically sees the highest demand for services for those unhoused in the region, including a number of temporary shelter spaces being opened for short stretches of colder weather.

While each service provider tallies their numbers a little differently, it was clear available services were at capacity over the cold winter months. Most facilities also counted visits instead of individual people, meaning the same person visiting for two nights would count as two people.

A March 2020 point in time count revealed at least 425 people were living unsheltered in Nanaimo, up roughly 25 per cent from 2018. An updated count is scheduled for the end of April.

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The Salvation Army New Hope Centre hosted 5,086 people over the winter, with around 1,000 people using their services every month.

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St. Peter’s Roman Catholic Church on Machleary St., operated by the Nanaimo Family Life Association, gave space to 4,050 people in the five months, including 2,773 men and 1,277 women.

Risebridge Society had two Warmreach shelters in operation this winter, one in Nanaimo and the other in Parksville.

According to their Facebook page, they supported over 1,000 individuals in the four-month span, thanks to their dedicated volunteers and staff, and $150,000 provided through the City of Nanaimo and the strengthing communities’ service program from the Union of BC Municipalities. (UBCM)

Risebridge’s Parksville location was in operation for 102 days, with the post saying they would have around 25 regulars every night, with a waiting list to use one of their 16 available beds.

St. Paul’s United Church, operated by the 7-10 Club Society, had its winter shelter open from Dec. 15 until the end of March, with a total of 5,417 visits, with over 2,000 in March alone.

Risebridge and St. Paul’s United Church both benefited from $625,000 in total funding secured through the UBCM.

Personal Impact
Coordinator of the Unitarian Shelter at 595 Townsite Rd. Mark Beaver said all of their 27 beds were full, seven days a week.

“It’s a tough gig, but we’re managing it and we’ve been able to support individuals every day over this year and last year and the year prior. We switched from extreme cold weather shelter model, which is five months a year, to a permanent year-round shelter in 2018, so we’ve had pretty steady numbers.”

He said they also had to turn away around a dozen people every night because they simply didn’t have room.

Beaver said they saw more dire conditions and heartbreaking stories from clients this winter, including at least nine individuals over the age of 65 trying to secure more permanent housing.

“We’ve been successfully able to house three of those individuals into older population housing, but it is temporarily for about a year through Connective Society (John Howard Society). We’re focusing mainly on the older population to try and get them housed in a safe environment.”

Beaver said they are also trying to house a 72-year-old man who’s a former miner, now living on the streets of Nanaimo.

He said all of the shelters in the area work together in order to provide services such as food, clothing, and of course shelter to all those who need it.

“We work along with CMHA (Canadian Mental Health Association) here in Nanaimo. We work with Island Health, we also have a shower program attached to this shelter which is down at Caledonian Park…we get the bag lunches through the 7-10 Club. It’s just everyone working together.”

St. Peter’s Roman Catholic Church and the Risebridge’s Parksville locations were only in operation for the winter months.

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jordan@nanaimonewsnow.com

On Twitter: @JordanDHeyNow