Success more likely when people have supports

By Lethbridge Herald on December 14, 2022.

Editor:

Re: Action Needed to address homeless situation:

Good for the LH Editorial Board! Action is definitely needed to address the homeless situation. 

When I had relatives living close to downtown, we saw homeless people every single day rummaging through garbage and sleeping in parks. A couple of years ago, The Mustard Seed came to Lethbridge. That group has lots of experience helping communities find solutions to homelessness. As soon as people become homeless, their problems escalate dramatically. 

The Mustard Seed proposed transforming the former Sandman Inn into affordable housing with – a critical piece – on-site supports. This move would have gone a long way to addressing the issues our downtown community still faces today. However, area neighbourhoods objected vociferously to the proposal, fearful that there would be homeless in their back alleys – when, in reality, the homeless would have been housed and would no longer be homeless. Alas, the Mustard Seed left, the problems continue, and here in the “burbs” (where I live), we are insulated by our distance from downtown. 

 And the homeless are still part of our community. As the Herald pointed out, individuals making the journey to sobriety must indeed take that first step themselves, whether they live in middle-class comfort or the harshness of the streets. 

Nobody can do it for them. That said, success is far more likely when a person has supports and a home. Indeed, for all of us, our journeys are easier when someone walks beside us. 

Leslie Lavers

Lethbridge