Right now, Barrie's homeless need our help more than ever before. While life as we know it has changed drastically, the fight continues for our community’s most vulnerable and the frontline workers that serve them.
Through the COVID-19 pandemic, our partner beneficiaries in Barrie have faced a number of increasing costs including additional staffing to help support the shelters high volume of guests, sanitation costs due to the increased scope and frequency of cleaning, personal protective equipment (PPE) to help keep their front-line staff protected and vulnerable residents safe and higher food supply costs as a result of more and more Canadians utilizing the system.
Redwood Park Communities provides safe, affordable, hopeful housing in community, through partnerships with local agencies serving vulnerable people who require affordable housing options in Simcoe County, Ontario. Funds raised will support 3 programs/projects including Redwood Rent Supplement Program, which will provide rent support for the most vulnerable families, the Family Support Team, which will off-set the cost of community events to encourage social interaction as well as personal care packages, and lastly, New Housing, which will off-set costs of creating new housing units for the most vulnerable in the community.
David Busby Street Centre is a community not-for-profit organization working from a non judgmental approach to advocate for and improve conditions for individuals and families within the County of Simcoe who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. Funds raised from the HHTH 2020 Tournament will be used to continue and expand operations and enhance their community Drop-In Centre programming to include emergency group lodging. Their drop-in support centre is the core of their support and served over 2,200 unique individuals and families over the last year who are experiencing, or at risk of, homelessness.
A Thank You from our Partners at the David Busby Street Centre
"We wanted to reach out, with immense gratitude, to thank you for your support of the David Busby Centre. Your significant contribution of $60,000 from the HHTH Barrie Tournament has made a huge impact on our community during these cold winter days and nights. Since we opened our doors on December 23rd, 2018, we have been at, and over, capacity most winter nights. What this means is that we have filled the 55 cots that we have allocated for each evening in our group lodging and we are seeing an additional 10-15 people on average using the overflow warming centre area. Your dollars are keeping many people safe and warm during the days and very cold evening. Your contribution is saving lives in your community. We have served over 347 unique men, women and youth since we opened our doors in late December 2018. These services are vital to keeping people safe during their detour of homelessness and connects them back to community resources and housing opportunities."
