Five months after a fire tore through a South Porcupine homeless shelter, the organization is ready to re-open its doors.
The Good Samaritan Inn Homeless Shelter is re-opening Monday, April 8 at its new location at the former South Porcupine United Church located at 108 Bloor St.
Executive director and board chair Ed Ligocki is looking forward to offering services in the community again.
In the months since the fire destroyed the previous building at the corner of Golden Avenue and Evans, a lot of adjustments have been made at the new building to comply with regulations from the fire department and health unit.
“We don’t want a repeat of what happened before, a shelter burning down. I fully endorse the fire department in being tough with us, so we’ve had to make a lot of adjustments here and we’re just finishing up now,” he said.
The shelter can house 15 people and is free for the first two weeks. After that, transitional housing, which is a paid service, is offered for up to two months.
“We do A to Z with them, we really help them out a lot. It’s more than just a place to lay down, have a pillow for your head; it’s more than just a place for a meal. We want to make them self sufficient,” he said.
Ligocki said they’re looking for instructors in areas such as mechanical, plumbing, electrical, or carpentry, for example.
“And we’re going to be helping people through these experts to get on their feet, to give a purpose in life because a lot of times people come here in a very depressed and very sad state. I’m the counsellor here and I hear it all, and they’ve been depressed for years and years and you just don’t get out of it that quickly. It’s a work in progress,” he said.
While people are staying at the shelter, he said they also try to teach other life skills such as cooking and banking.
“We’re going to try to build up a skill level in these people so when they do leave us, if it’s two or three months down the road, they have a head start,” he said.
Weekly suppers will also be offered at the shelter.
Wednesdays starting April 10, at 4:30 p.m. all the needy in the area can also stop by the inn for a meal.
“It’s a great feeling to be able to help people out. When I leave the shelter... and I lay in bed at night I have a good sense of accomplishment,” he said.
