THUNDER BAY – Shelter House Thunder Bay has kicked off their annual gift of warmth campaign and to start the community off, Kennedy Design Co. has donated $500 to the campaign.
“My uncle, Guy, left us a number of years ago, far too soon, and I wanted to make the first donation to this campaign in his memory today,” said Shelter House development officer Kimberly Kennedy.
“This campaign is really about giving the gift of warmth, there’s so many of us who are fortunate enough to be able to go home at the end of the day and sleep in our warm bed, have a warm dinner and all that stuff that we just take for granted.”
All proceeds from the campaign will go to support local programs that help individuals and families living in poverty in Thunder Bay.
“We were just mentioning it earlier; the importance of a campaign like this, because we were complaining about the cold out here in just a couple moments [of being outside], but for so many people that are less fortunate, it’s just every day,” said executive director Michelle Jordan.
“Every year we talk about the gift of warmth because we do provide shelter here for people, and our winters are really harsh here, and, you know, people suffer in the elements, so we try to take some of that suffering away by providing a warm space, a warm meal and some warm clothing and that’s what your gift provides.”
The campaign's goal this year is $200,000 and people can help out by donating cash, warm clothing, food items, and also by volunteering time at the Shelter House especially with so many people having such a difficult time during the pandemic.
“So the pandemic has really shown that there are some gaps in the services that are provided and we’re really trying to work together with other organizations in the city that support people that are experiencing homelessness,” said Jordan.
“S.O.S was one of those programs that was filling gaps for people that needed transportation to go from one shelter to another or to the hospital, that sort of thing, so, we’re continuing to try to do that and those donations help with those services as well.”
For more information on the Gift of Warmth campaign, visit the Shelter House’s website.
