Safe Haven is temporarily re-opening its doors to people needing a warm place to sleep.
To help fill the void until renovations are complete at Living Space, a warming centre being built on Cedar Street North, Safe Haven is running for four weekends, starting this Friday (Nov. 24).
Located at 105 Dwyer Ave., at the corner of Aura Lake Street, Safe Haven offers six beds on Friday and Saturday night to people in need. Drop in days are also held a couple days a month for people to pick up food, clothes or hygiene items.
Last winter the shelter was open from December to March, but this year organizer Carole Faucher said it’s only open for four weeks.
“It’s just to help people and I know those people, I know who they are from last year,” she said.
For the people who used the shelter last year, sleeping bags with their names on written on the package line the side of one of the sleeping cubicles. If they return, their gear will be waiting.
The doors open at 10 p.m., lights out is 11 p.m., and wake up is at 8 a.m. The beds are filled on a first-come, first-served basis.
In the morning, Faucher said the guests leave with a bus voucher and Tim Hortons card so they can buy a coffee and muffin for breakfast.
Running Safe Haven last year was a learning experience.
At the time, she was working full time as a teacher and doing the outreach work. To research, she and her husband took a trip to Sudbury to visit similar shelters, which gave them ideas on how to set up a routine and organize a kitchen, along with safety tips.
She said there is more of a need for these services in Timmins than people realize.
“It’s the dignity of the person that you have to respect. It’s hard for some of them to ask for help,” she said.
Safe Haven is operated by volunteers.
There are three volunteers per shift, with at least one of those being a man. The shifts are 10 p.m. to 2 a.m., and 2 a.m. to 8 a.m.
“All the slots are full but we appreciate people still giving out their names for back up, in case somebody can’t come in or is sick,” she said.
After the temporary shelter run is over, Faucher will still run the open houses throughout the month.
For that, she accepts donations of snacks for kids’ lunches and clothing. Right now there is a need for winter boots in all sizes.
The open houses will be advertised on the Safe Haven Facebook page, which is being set up and should be ready next week.
