After a quick supper and packing of snacks, we departed from Foothills Mennonite Church for the last time that month. We drove downtown to a place by the river where we met some representatives from Streetlight, which is an organization that helps youth find a place to go other than the street. We were split into two groups for what would be the entire night.
Each group was led along a different tour around downtown Calgary, showing us different agencies and services available to homeless people in the downtown area. The tour took about four hours and took us to see many different services, from medical clinics to youth drop-in centres. When we arrived back at the place where we had originally started, around 11:00 pm, we were informed about the competition that was going to take place. Each group had to talk to six homeless people, make inspirational chalk art on the sidewalks, design a plan for the day ahead as if we were homeless, collect bottles and cans in a garbage bag, find a place where the group could "sleep" for the night, and finally, follow clues given to us on sort of a scavenger hunt to find a backpack full of food.
Frustrations ran high as the night wore on. We were tired, we were cold, and there didn't seem to be a whole lot of options available to us. Both groups ended up sheltering at the 24 hour Tim Hortons at some point during the night. By around 4:00 AM, the "Street Survival" ended, and we all met back at the place where we had started, and the winners of the competition were announced. We then piled into the van, made it safely back to the church, and all went to sleep shortly thereafter.
About six hours later, we woke up and had a wonderful brunch made by Dave and Ashley (The deans/chaperones of the trip). Then, we traveled to the Mustard Seed resource center, where we volunteered for a couple hours. We un-bagged, sorted,and re-bagged clothes that were donated. The Mustard Seed is a shelter that offers a variety of other services, such as housing and counselling. They also function as a mailbox for homeless people, so that they can receive assistance from the government.
We then went back to Foothills to set up for the evening. Foothills Mennonite Church works with Inn from the Cold to provide about fifteen beds once a month. We set up cots and made beds, and helped with preparing supper. We then ate with, and socialized with the people who were going to stay at the church tonight. Currently, most people have gone to bed, (right now it's only quarter to nine) and everyone is preparing for a big day tomorrow.
The pictures in this entry are of the two groups that we were split into for Night on the Streets, and a shot giving some credit to our intrepid photographer, Vichael Ho.
Tomorrow, we're off to Blackfoot Crossing! More to follow...
-Benjamin Schulz
