​Our floors were tattered and torn, threadbare and worn.  We’ve been holding them together with duct tape for the last year, but now in partnership with the Home Depot Canada Foundation we were able to replace the worn out carpets with brand new hard surface durable flooring! 
Having a hard surface floor has many benefits.  It makes our space more accessible for people with physical disabilities who have a hard time navigating on carpet, especially those who have to drag their feet, push a walker or maneuver a wheelchair. 
Grime and bacteria tend to cling to carpet fibers so having easy to clean floors is wonderful for children and babies to play on.
You know, our guests have to walk pretty much every where they go.  And when the weather is bad everyone’s coming in with dirty boots.  Having hard surface flooring makes keeping them clean a whole lot easier.  We are especially enjoying them in our coffee time area where most of the spills happen.
Thank you to everyone who helped prepare the space and install our new floors!  A special thank you to The Home Depot Canada Foundation for making this renovation possible!

SCO is 10 years old and we would like to thank our community for their support!

We have spent the last decade working with people in our community who are struggling to make ends meet and what a pleasure it's been!  We'd like to invite everyone to a BBQ on June 26 from 11-2 at 345 Loewen Blvd to show our gratitude for your support.

It's been 10 years of service to our community and what a journey it's been!  There have been so many ups and downs, so many stories lived, and many, many pots of coffee poured.  It has been a privilege to have gotten to know so many people over the years. Our family has grown from a small group of individuals in a high school classroom to a large community of people from all walks of life gathering together and taking over the whole second floor of a building.  Thank you to those who let us walk their path with them.  What a difference your stories have made to our community.   Thank you to our volunteers who are willing to share of your time and your hearts.  You have truly made a difference.  Thank you to our donors, who make our programs possible.  The need for our services continues to grow.  So please, come join our family for lunch on the 26th.  We'd love to see you there!

Are you interested in giving back?  SCO has a number of ways you can get involved!
We are currently looking to fill the following volunteer opportunities.







Advocate

• People who access Outreach's services often have problems they can't solve on their own.  They need advice, support and assistance navigating the system. Assisting these individuals often involves helping them find an apartment they can afford, giving them a ride when they need it, helping them fill out forms, running errands and shopping with clients, lending a listening ear, advising as needed, and connecting them with other resources in the community.  Training will be provided.  This volunteer position is great for people who want to give back but only have time evenings and weekends or have flexible schedules.  For more information please contact Irene at steinbachoutreach@gmail.com.

Preschool Nutrition Mentor ~ Beginning in September!

• Our preschool nutrition program delivers healthy snacks to our families who have preschool age children living with them.  Once a week you would deliver snack packages to the door of the family in need and check in to see if there is anything else we can help them with.  This is a volunteer position that we can make work with your schedule, so if you are available days or evenings we can make it work!  For more information please contact Myra at steinbachoutreach@gmail.com.

​Drop In Center Volunteer

• There is room on the front line to meet and greet guests, share a cup of coffee, fold a few pants and hand out some freezer meals.  If you are available between 9:30 and 11:30 am once per week please contact Myra at steinbachoutreach@gmail.com.

If you have any other talents or services that would benefit the people who access Steinbach Community Outreach's services please contact Myra at steinbachoutreach@gmail.com.  We are always looking for new ways to help our guests.

SCO is proud to be a part of the Taste of Summer Charity Bbq this summer!  Come join us on August 1st between 11 and 1 for some good eats and tasty treats in front of the Steinbach Credit Union on Main and Lumber.  Can't wait to see you there!

For the first time ever we are open for summer hours!

​Typically we have closed over the summer but we are working to become even more accessible to those in need.  While our clients aren't fighting the cold Canadian winter the need for food never goes away.  

Join us on Tuesdays this summer.
​Coffee and snacks are limited (if at all) but feel free to come and visit.

Dates Open
July 10
July 17
July 24
July 31
August 7
August 14

​We are closed for holidays July 3 and August 21 and 28th.
Doors reopen for regular hours on September 4!

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As always everyone is welcome to join us at the drop in center for coffee, treats and conversations between 9:30 and 11:30.  This Valentines Day wear red to celebrate!

Please note: We will be CLOSED from December 23rd, 2016 to January 9th, 2017

http://steinbachonline.com/local/local-ceos-to-experience-homelessness  
Category: Local News
Published: Thursday, 15 September 2016 10:32
Written by Daryl Braun

More than 40 community leaders in Steinbach will participate in the CEO Sleepout Thursday night. They will sleep outdoors at K.R. Barkman Park, next to the fire hall, to experience what it's like to have nowhere to live. Simone Penner of Today House, a local shelter for the homeless, says the annual event generates awareness about the plight of the homeless and is also their only fundraising event of the year.

Irene Kroeker, an outreach worker in Steinbach, says this is a good exercise.

"I'm excited that other people are actually going to experience a little bit about what all those people we deal with experience. And, it's been a little cold lately."

Kroeker says, as part of the experience, they will profile some of the real life local stories about homeless people in Steinbach and have the CEOs put themselves in those shoes and see how they'd respond.
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"We are going to experience, vicariously, about 15 different scenarios about people that we have helped, 100% true, and they will read about it and then we will ask them some questions to see how they would be able to problem-solve if they were that person."

For example, Kroeker says it's not so easy to go out and look for a job when you've spent the night outdoors and your biggest concerns are getting something to eat and figuring out where you'll sleep the next night. She notes this tends to open a lot of eyes to the plight of the homeless and the challenges they face.