Edmonton and Beyond

We made our 3rd drop yesterday at the Mustard Seed (Edmionton). We met some great people Rev. Sam Breakey, Wesley Proch, and Laurel Hoffmann. Laurel tells me that they are seeing an increase in people in need with the recent economic downturn. 16132 visits were made to there personal assistance center in 2008 for clothing and hygiene items. Underwear is only one of the items needed. Wesley is a young energetic member of the team and runs the personal assistance center. We had a chance to interview him and found that he was full of innovative ideas for increasing the help they are able to administer. I look forward to keeping in touch with him and learning more of his success. I asked Rev. Breakey to tell me one thing that could be offered to increase their effectiveness and he told me that volunteers from the community were their best asset. The seed focuses on building trust in the neighborhood so they might be available to help when individuals are ready to make the transition. Volunteers from the community are essential to that first step.

Along the way we had a chance to do some investigative reporting on cheque cashing establishments in the area. There are many barriers to the homeless and this one is huge. More on this in my next report.

We have delivered 3/10th of the load. The motor home is still cramped but we managed to get access to the stove today so I could cook a pizza as we traveled to Saskatoon, I look forward to access to the bathroom and the shower.

Off to the Bridge on 2oth in Saskatoon

Stay tuned.

Brent