National Housing Day is tomorrow and everyone is invited to the Majestic Lawn

Travis Hulan is the Housing manager with Qalipu First Nations. He has sat at the table for many discussions on housing and says it is very complex in this area with so much stigma attached to homelessness.

Preparations are underway in Corner Brook in advance of National Housing Day tomorrow. A public and open event is set to get underway 11 a.m.  at the Majestic Lawn. Jade Mahoney is the co-chair of the Coalition on Community Housing and Homelessness. She says safe and affordable housing is the focus for the coalition using a collective voice on the needs of the area. Travis Hulan is the Housing manager with Qalipu First Nations. He has sat at the table for many discussions on housing and says it is very complex in this area with so much stigma attached to homelessness. He says most people think about people sleeping on park benches and panhandling but in reality homelessness comes in different forms in the Corner Brook area. Hulan says people here couch surf, stay in emergency shelters or hotels, but some are unidentified and staying in abandoned buildings. He says it’s the unidentifiable homelessness that we can’t see that is increasing in this area and the challenge is more resources. 

Mahoney is also an Interagency Coordinator with Community Mental Health Initiative. She says these people are experiencing what’s called fight or flight and they do what they can to survive. Mahoney says funds raised through the  coalition help support people in need, who are homeless or at risk with things like rental and utility arrears, transportation, rental deposits, and more.