Light Moments in Dark Months

As the post-Christmas ‘Blahs’ set in and we trudge through January and February towards an eventual spring thaw and Easter Resurrection of hope and redemption, I am reminded of how difficult it is to bear up and to maintain ones’ good cheer and good spirits in the face of the ongoing onslaught of freezing cold temperatures, snow, and the perennial litany of bad news which emanates from the media.

But that said, ORH continues to keep its head above water with the provision of much-needed and much-appreciated temporary housing for our heretofore homeless Veterans. Presently, ORH has four Veterans temporarily housed in units around the city with the funds made available to us by Infrastructure Canada, and we are on track to be able to get these clients through the winter to the warmer weather, then see what solutions we can find going forward.

One Veteran stands out in particular. Let’s call him Matt. Matt is an older gentleman in his 70s, and has faced multiple challenges over the years with respect to his mental health, housing, PTSD, physical health, etc., and has been bumped around from city to city for years. Matt was homeless and slept rough for about 5 years before we finally found a place for him before Christmas, and all the stars aligned by the Grace of God, and his mental health got better, and he was lucid enough to get the help he needed, and we provided it.

So, Alleluia, and Amen for yet another small victory in this ongoing quest against this monster we call Homelessness and Affordability.

I’ll take my little victories wherever I can get them at this point during the dark days of February. Let there be Light!

~ Peter Stuart, Veterans Housing Coordinator