PDF Edition - The Gauntlet

GAUNTLET FEATURES FEBRUARY 05.09 23
Unlike the other floors of the Drop-In and Rehab Centre, which is one of the only shelters in the city which will accept people
who are intoxicated, the fourth floor of the building is reserved for those who are sober. It is kept this way so individuals who
are trying to escape substance abuse and homelessness can do so without being around individuals who are still using. A
while back there was a man living on that floor who became one of its great success stories. During the period he spent there
he was able to shake off his substance abuse problems and regain his clarity. He also became a sort of leader on the floor, encouraging
others to find the strength to overcome their own problems. Eventually he felt strong enough to move out on his own and reclaim his life.
AAbout a year later, he started returning to
that part of the world. He was going to the
Cecil Hotel for a few drinks before walking
around the corner to the DIC to visit the friends
who were still living there. But they were on
the fourth floor and he had been drinking,
so he wasn’t allowed in. This happened a few
times and in each case he got angry that he
wasn’t allowed to see the friends he had once
lent his support and guidance to. On one such
occasion, Louise Gallagher, the DIC’s director
of public relations and volunteer services,
asked him why he was returning to the habits
he had so strenuously overcome.
He felt lost, he told her. While he had been
at the DIC, he had a purpose. He was getting
sober and helping others to do the same. But
as soon as he left and re-entered the world,
he lost that purpose. He was confronted with
the mundane and crushing burden of dayto-day
life, of living as just another member
of a large society. And that was hard to bear.
To end homelessness we have
to end the contributing factors
So he began returning to the world he had
worked so hard to escape. Not all is lost for
him yet, but that may not be the case for too
long.
“The possibility is high that he [will] become
homeless again, unless there is some
sort of intervention to restore that sense of
community and give him that sense of purpose,
that sense of meaning,” said Gallagher.
OOne year ago last Thursday, the Calgary
Committee to End Homelessness released
their 10 Year Plan to End Homelessness. The
plan was the product of a full year’s effort and
drew heavily on similar plans that have been
successful in the United States.
The idea for the project began a year and
a half prior in September 2006, when Philip
Mangano, the leading homelessness expert for
the U.S. government, came to speak in Calgary.
The approach to homelessness he presented
at that talk was different from the many ways
the situation had been previously addressed.
Instead of asking homeless individuals, a disproportionate
amount of who suffer from
mental illness and substance abuse, to solve
their problems before being put into a house,
he proposed the radical strategy of housing
first. Instead of telling people they needed to
clean up before they could get housing, they
were put into a place and then given the assistance
they needed to tackle their problems
in a comfortable environment.
“The voices you’re hearing if you’re homeless
may be the least of your [concerns] if you
are worried about finding a place to sleep or
something to eat or worrying about the –40
degree weather,” pointed out Homeless Foundation
president Tim Richter.
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