
I'd like to introduce you to Deb, one of our newest volunteers.
Deb has been here for two months as an advocate. An advocate helps our guests work through their problems. Their problems could be things like getting on to social assistance, finding an affordable apartment, getting ID, and pretty much anything they need help with.
"I was inspired by a news article about the coffee boy who was concerned about the homeless in the cold and wanted to do something, so he set up a coffee stand for people waiting in line at Outreach. I was sitting at home, during Covid and recently retired and thought this was something I would like to do with my daughter. A couple of weeks later my daughter and I served coffee to people waiting in line outside at SCO. I was so impressed with the warmth and welcoming atmosphere at Outreach and I felt like I wanted to become a part of it, make a difference, to help, to give back. After that first day of working alongside Irene and Myra I really felt called to be here." ~Deb
There are many reasons people come to volunteer at SCO. Quite a few of our volunteers are recently retired 55+ people who are looking to fill their time by giving back to the community. A handful are young adults looking for work experience that is also self fulfilling. A bunch of our volunteers are also our guests who are looking to give back to the place that has helped them out so much.
We have a lot of fun here at Outreach and learn many surprising things during our time here.
"What has surprised me the most is the high number of women in domestic violence situations who come to us and are homeless. Also the number of men and women with mental health challenges. I expected the majority of guests to be homeless as a result of addictions, but this isn't the case. Each person has a unique story that deserves to be heard." ~Deb
There are tons of jobs that volunteers help with at Outreach. There are always donations that need sorting, food and hygiene hampers to hand out, food that needs to be made into casseroles, and furniture to be moved, but the most important job is simply connecting with our guests over a cup of coffee. If you would like to come by and see what we do, meet our guests, and perhaps join our team of volunteers please send an email to Myra at steinbachoutreach@gmail.com. We would love to connect with you!