The Steele Family Foundation

Winter Warmth 2010 Clothing Drive

January 2010. The Steele Family Foundation and our generous donors gathered bags full of clothing and supplies for those in need this winter. Donated to the following shelters:
- Toronto: www.goodshepherd.ca
- Cambridge: www.cambridgesheltercorp.ca

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  This is a picture of the Good Shepherd Centre building, with the meal line wrapped all the way around to the front door. The people you see waiting outside are actually only about the half the people waiting. There’s a ramp built inside the Centre – it’s twice the length of the dining room, with benches along the side. Originally, the Brothers hoped that everyone waiting for a meal would be able to wait comfortably inside on the ramp, dry and warm and out of the public view. Unfortunately, when you’ve got 600 to 800 people in line, and the dining room only seats about 150 people, that’s not possible! What I find amazing is that it actually is possible to serve 800 meals in a 2-hour period.

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  Here's a fun picture of Br. Richard serving hot chocolate. The shelter has upgraded since this picture was taken with a whole bank of beverage dispensers and guests serve themselves.

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  This is one of the many cubicles in the main dorm. There are two lockers in there too - one for each guest. Guests can lock up their possessions, and leave them there during the day if they want.

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  Laundry room is a very important place for an organization that puts clean sheets on 91 beds every single night. Not to mention providing clean towels for everyone who spends the night, and for everyone who uses the showers that are open during the drop-in. The washing machines can hold 50 pounds of laundry each — and they still run for about 6 hours a day. As you can see from the picture, even pillows get washed and dried

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  Volunteers hand the clean clothing out through a window in the clothing room. The clothing room is open in the morning during the drop-in — the showers next door are open at the same time. If people want to shave and shower before they put on their clean clothes, they can do so.

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  Dining room, after the renovations to the in April 2009.

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  This is what the dining room looked like this past Thanksgiving, for the special meal. For special meals, we have volunteers serving the guests – like a restaurant rather than the usual cafeteria style. The Centre served about 1,500 Thanksgiving meals. The total meals number of meals served that day was close to 2,000. (Our average right now is about 1,200 meals per day.)

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  Jennifer dropping off bags in the clothing room.

  Msg fr Good Shepherd: Thank you so much for the great donation. We go through clothes so quickly – one day the room is full, a couple days later there’s barely anything on the hangers. And shaving cream and other toiletries make such a difference to our clients – it’s a big boost to their self-respect.

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  Cambridge Shelter Common Room

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  Cambridge Shelter

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  Cambridge Shelter Kitchen

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  Lydia, Gary, Jennifer