Winter clothing needed for city’s vulnerable

By Tim Kalinowski on February 11, 2021.

LETHBRIDGE HERALDtkalinowski@lethbridgeherald.comL

Streets Alive Mission says it needs more winter clothing to help the city’s most vulnerable get through this recent cold snap and onward through the end of winter.
“We need layerable winter clothing,” says Streets Alive director of operations Cameron Kissick.
“Long Johns, warm shirts, sweaters, hoodies, water resistant winter jackets, gloves are especially important, handwarmers… We also need the realization that when you are out in this for 15 minutes and get into your vehicle or your house, and you say, ‘Wow, it was cold out there,’ that 15 minutes is a short period of time, and a lot of these people are spending hours of it out on the street.”
Kissick says it should start to warm up this weekend, but the temperatures will still be plenty cold enough next week to make any donations quite welcome.
“The cold snap will be over, but it will still be going down to -15 at night with highs below zero,” he says. “That’s still dangerous weather to be out on the street in. It may not be as dangerous, but it still requires people to be prepared for it.”
For those in the local homeless community the past week of arctic temperatures has been an incredible challenge, says Kissick.
“The walk between Streets Alive and the shelter, which is really the only two places they have access to right now, is a very cold walk when it’s -30 C,” he explains. “When it is -30 C, it is possible to lose fingers and get frostbite, and all that, when they are not ready for (those temperatures). In Lethbridge, I think, it is less about the homeless population than the addicted population who might be on substances in this type of weather. That sense of proportion and reality is lost to them; so that is where you have them out without gloves, wandering, and not really noticing or realizing they are doing significant physical damage to themselves.
“We are seeing some evidence of frostbite,” Kissick adds, “and we are trying to do our best to make sure we can give them what they need when we are talking fingers and toes. We are trying to make sure they are wearing warm socks and proper winter boots or insulated shoes, and gloves. We also have handwarmers. We are trying to give them as much as we can to keep warm.”
Kissick says donated items of clothing can be dropped off at its building on 323 4th Street South, and he reminds readers for those seeking to support the ongoing work of the Mission in a different way that this year’s “Coldest Night of the Year” walk will take place on Feb. 20.

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