Bonnie Krysowaty, co-ordinator of the Poverty Reduction Strategy and researcher/program manager at the Lakehead Social Planning Council in Thunder Bay, Ont., says gathering information from people experiencing homelessness is essential in order to secure more resources in the city.
A recent point-in-time count of people experiencing homelessness in Thunder Bay, Ont., found that more than 78 per cent of respondents were Indigenous. Here are some of the main challenges facing the unhoused population, and what advocates and those surveyed said would help the most. Taylor Adair says she isn't surprised the majority of people in Thunder Bay, Ont., experiencing homelessness are Indigenous, but the numbers are still disheartening.
People experiencing homelessness were surveyed at three locations where they frequently access services: the Thunder Bay Indigenous Friendship Centre, Elevate NWO, and People Advocating for Change Through Empowerment .- Bonnie Krysowaty, Lakehead Social Planning Council For example, about 43 per cent of those surveyed have spent time in foster care or a group home. Of those, more than 30 per per cent said Child Protection Services were not helpful in their transition out of the system.
"Let's get those wraparound supports going, let's make sure that people have all the options on the table, everything from the far end of harm reduction all the way through to those abstinence-based programs — when and if they decide that that's the right choice for them," Gauvin said.
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