Last night, a 65-year-old man laid out a sleeping bag and thin mat inside a crumpled tent pitched on the cobblestone in front of Collingwood's town hall as his bed for the night.
Dave Fish might have found a softer grassy place to sleep, but this time he didn't want to be out of sight.
This week, Fish started a quiet one-man protest behind the "CWOOD" sign in front of town hall, where he set up his tent and played a few songs for passersby to remind people of the homelessness that exists in Collingwood.
Fish shared his story with CollingwoodToday.ca recently in an article about those living in tent cities in Collingwood. Homeless since April, Fish shared personal accounts of what led to him experiencing homelessness and how he spends his days surviving while trying to secure housing in town.
Two weekends ago, the trailer he uses, which attached to his bicycle to carry all his worldly possessions was stolen, along with his tent, sleeping bag and a pay-as-you-go cell phone which was purchased for him by a Good Samaritan.
At the same time, Fish says he has also been offered support from people around Collingwood, with some offering new clothes, food, and extensions of pro-bono services to help him get his finances in order.
However, the key thing he’s looking for – housing – still eludes him.
Fish told CollingwoodToday.ca this week that he managed to secure a new tent and sleeping bag from the David Busby Centre – South Georgian Bay, however the sleeping bag was wet and when he inquired about using the shelter, he was told there wasn’t space.
The issue is one The Busby Centre says is ramping up in town with not enough resources to go around.
“It’s a case-by-case situation. If you’re asking for a tent instead of shelter, we ask to re-assess in about week’s time, rather than someone taking a tent and a shelter bed because we have limited resources,” said Busby Centre executive director Sara Peddle.
The Busby Centre – South Georgian Bay offers tents and sleeping bags as part of their outreach services, however there is an assessment that takes place to make sure they aren’t discarded throughout the community.
“We try to assess it every two to four weeks. Depending on the weather, sometimes they can get beat up,” said Peddle. “If (people experiencing homelessness) have means for other shelter, we would try to divert them to that other shelter.”
While Peddle said she couldn’t speak to any specific person’s situation due to confidentiality, she said there are currently nine shelter beds in Collingwood and this week, they have been full most nights.
“We’ve been getting a lot of calls. We’ve been trying to work within tight budget constraints. We were very fortunate to receive $75,000 in support from the Town of Collingwood and $60,000 from the County of Simcoe, but we have very long winters,” she said. “That goes toward staffing, supplies, the building... it doesn’t go as far as we would like it to.”
The David Busby Centre – South Georgian Bay is always in need of tents and sleeping bags. If you’d like to donate, arrangements can be made through a designated phone line for donation inquiries at 705-828-3795.
