Adam Prudhomme
Beaver Staff
The Lennox and Addington Poverty Reduction Committee is hoping to shed light on a sometimes invisible, yet very real problem in the region. On Tuesday they spoke to Greater Napanee council about the ever-growing number of homeless people in L&A County.
“There’s been an increase in the amount of people we’re serving from people that are homeless,” said Shelley Hagerman, crisis worker with Mental Health and Addictions Napanee, as well as member of the Poverty Reduction Committee. “We don’t have any shelter space, (there’s been an increase) in the people that are accessing food.”
Hagerman says they were speaking to council to not only help raise awareness of the growing problem, but also to get the ball rolling on any future fundraising initiatives they could have in partnership with the town, perhaps at some of their major events. She says last year they fell sort of their funding needs and would also seek any municipal grants that may be available to them this year.
During the deputation council was also invited to take part in the annual Poverty Challenge, which the committee organizes in conjunction with NDSS.
“Every year we run the Poverty Challenge at the high school here,” said Brittany Couto of the Napanee Area Community Health Centre. “We invite students to attend. They are given a profile and given a day in the life of someone living in poverty and they’re asked to access the various services that are in the Napanee region to make sure their needs are being met.”
Those that design the hypothetical scenarios are always sure to include a series of road blocks meant to make things difficult for the students to get the support they need.
“It is hard to see on the streets,” said Couto. “You don’t normally see it on the streets of Napanee, however it is here. We’re working with these clients everyday. We want to make sure they have a voice tp be heard.”
Council accepted the report and promised to send representation to this year’s Poverty Challenge.