Reflection from a Homeless Shelter Volunteer

Brilliant writers, like Ray Bradbury and Snoopy, can open with, “It was a dark and stormy night.”  Regular folks, like me and presumably you, cannot get away with clichéd openings.  That is a problem because stormy, dark nights are partly what I am writing about.  I write about such nights because I want to reflect on my experience as a volunteer at a homeless shelter – Out of the Cold in Saint John, NB.  Out of the Cold is a winter emergency shelter for homeless men that is in a church parlour.  If safe shelter cannot be assumed, “It was a dark and stormy night,” is not eerie, mysterious, or even cliché.  It is frightening.

†

Out of the Cold Presentation

Thank you to the congregations of The Church of Saint Andrew and Saint David & Centenary Queen Square United Church for allowing me to share a bit about Out of the Cold this morning.

 

 

 

Out of the Cold

I was happy to share with Edith Avenue Baptist Church on October 6, 2013 about Out of the Cold Men's Shelter in Saint John.

A transcript is included.

Grace Presbyterian is a Church that Responds to Poverty

Saint John has a homelessness problem.  Saint John also has a cold, wet, snowy winter.  Knowing this, Grace Presbyterian Church opened their doors so homeless men in Saint John could get out of cold and in to a safe, warm, dry place to sleep. Out of the Cold was born.  It was open every night in January, February, and March to give forty-four homeless men a place to sleep during the winter of 2012.  A dedicated group of volunteers made a nightly shelter possible.  Each had his or her own reasons to help at Out of the Cold.