By Peter Biggs

A work party from The Oasis in Duncan on Vancouver Island help unload shower units donated by Andrew Sheret plumbing company for The Lord's Rain at Carrall Street Church, near Pigeon Park in Vancouver's downtown eastside.

Last November, more than 800 attended a conference on the subject held at St. Andrew’s-Wesley United Church led by Ed Blackburn, deputy director of Central City Concern in Portland, Oregon.

Portland’s homeless population has decreased 39 percent two years into a 10 year program.

Initiatives being undertaken in Metro Vancouver include:

Vancouver:

• The Lord’s Rain - Adjacent to the downtown eastside’s Pigeon Park is Carrall Street Church. They are in process of setting up The Lord’s Rain – four shower stalls, in the vacant ground floor of their building. They are also seeking to provide haircuts and clean clothing. “This will significantly help people in presenting themselves for jobs,” said associate pastor Drew Snider. “We have received a timely provision of showers by the plumbing supply company of Andrew Sheret, and funding from The Oasis – a church in Duncan, along with a large set-up donation from an individual,” he said. Carrall Street Church will soon be providing four showers, three mornings a week, with a special ‘ladies night.’ “We are going to need ongoing donations to cover operating expenses,” Snider told BCCN. For more info: www.gospelmission.net.

• ‘Streams’ call for counters – Streams of Justice, a Christian organization headed by Dave Diewert is encouraging churches to be part of the 2008 Metro Vancouver Homeless Count, funded by the Homelessness Partnership Initiative and the United Way of the Lower Mainland. It is scheduled to take place in Greater Vancouver during a 24-hour period beginning the night of March 10, and ending the following evening. The purpose of the 2008 Homeless Count, say organizers, is “to produce an updated estimate of the street and sheltered homeless, a demographic profile of this population and identify trends in relation to previous counts. This information is then used to aid in service planning and inform policy development.”

Tri-cities:

• ‘In from the cold’ – In Coquitlam, after some heated and lengthy public meetings last December, the city council approved a proposal which will enable several area churches to take turns providing shelter for the local homeless population who are threatened by cold weather.

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Coquitlam city councillor Richard Stewart stated: “I suspect that the operation of the emergency shelters in these neighbourhoods will go largely unnoticed, except by some cold and lonely men and women who will be thankful that, as places of worship have done for centuries, a church opened its doors during cold wet weather to those with no place to go.”

• Compassion with Elvis – Five churches in the Tri-Cities are trying to raise funds to support local initiatives that address homelessness. An interchurch men’s group is organizing a fund-raising concert with Jack Overbury as ‘Elvis Within,’ with special guests Troy Gibson singing Roy Orbison and the rock band ‘Shadows From the Past.’

Mayors and special dignitaries of the Tri-Cities will attend the event March 9 at the newly renovated Coquitlam Alliance Church.

• ‘Dollar a Day Campaign’ – Coquitlam Alliance Church youth have articulated a vision to inspire Christians throughout Metro Vancouver to donate a dollar a day for a month to be used by established street ministries in helping address issues of homelessness and poverty.

 They are holding a training day for our volunteers March 8 at the church. For more info: www.dollaradaycampaign.com or 604.339.9356.

Surrey:

• ‘Poverty Reduction’ forum - Surrey’s Fleetwood Christian Reformed Church is hosting a series of forums, ‘Poverty Reduction Strategies for the Poor Among Us,’ February 10 – March 16. “We are concerned about the homeless and also about those whose basic needs are barely being met,” says Tom Bomhof, chair of the church’s Social Justice group, “and we want to consider advocating for effective government policies and structural changes.”

Participants will have the opportunity to respond to six leaders active in the field: Seth Klein from the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives; Leslie Richardson from First Call B.C. Child/Youth Advocacy Coalition; Jean Swanson from Raise the Rates; Christine Siebenga with the Ministry of Social Services Youth Division; Jonathan Bird from City in Focus; and Chandra Pasma from Citizens for Public Justice.

March 2008