Coldest Night of the Year walk: steps forward from an ever-present chilling challenge

Last night was the ninth in a row the city had to make its warming centre on Cook available to people seeking shelter from the unseasonal cold.

Imagine having to spend most of your day—and then not getting a spot and being forced to overnight it—in the biting cold.

That’s exactly what organizers of this month’s Coldest Night of the Year fundraiser would like to drive home 10 days in advance of their annual walkathon, which they deem “crucial” to providing comfort and care for those experiencing housing and food insecurity.

“It's a beautiful and fun experience,” says Rachel Hesketh, community relations and events coordinator for Victoria’s Our Place Society. “But it really is a taste of the challenge that so many people experience on a nightly basis here in Victoria.”

The city’s warming hub at the Cook Street Village Activity Centre has been at or near its capacity of approximately 30 people since this cold snap began more than a week ago, city spokesperson Colleen Mycroft told Capital Daily.

Our Place operates an emergency shelter with 74 spots. Of those, 34 beds are in bunk beds, 20 are shelter mats in its community centre on Pandora, and 20 are new shelter beds at the MyPlace Transitional Shelter on Yates.

While everyone is grateful for the mats, “no one should be sleeping like that, period. It’s not acceptable, but it’s better than being stuck outside,” Hesketh says, in agreement with Our Place colleague Grant McKenzie who recently spoke about this with Capital Daily.

Shelter bed at Our Place. Photo: Our Place Society

Waitlist isn't out of the ordinary

On any given cold night, there’s a 10-person waitlist, so it’s not uncommon for staff to walk people over to other available shelters, such as the nearby Salvation Army.

Our Place Society and Pacific Centre Family Services Association (PCFSA) have been holding the annual walkathon for the past seven years. It’s their second-most relied-upon fundraiser, next to its Hungry Hearts foodie fundraiser. And this year’s event is looking even more vital.

Inflation, supply chain issues, and other factors have combined to increase food costs as much as 28% at a time when Our Place has seen a 25% rise in demand for community meals, the non-profit says.

“Right now, we're seeing the numbers are just so challenging, so getting those funds in place through Coldest Night is really crucial,” Hesketh tells Capital Daily.

“For us to keep up with the need for meals and to keep up with these rising food costs, we are very, very dependent on fundraisers like Coldest Night of the Year to keep feeding people.”

Coldest Night raises needed cash

Last year, the event helped to raise $190K, which went directly into supporting Our Place’s food program at its downtown community centre as well as its therapeutic recovery centre in View Royal.

Our Place serves 1,400 meals each day. Out in the Westshore, the PCFSA provides key social and health services to those in need, as it has for 55 years. Last year, it supported 8K individuals with counselling, healthcare, and Indigenous liaison services.

As PCFSA Executive Director Liz Nelson puts it, the goal is to instill hope, and “empower people to move forward step by step, toward a life of stability and independence.”

That step-by-step motto is what drove 800+ to march in last year’s foot fundraisers—there’s a 5km and 2km route—in downtown Victoria and along the Westshore.

Where the money goes

While some of the proceeds are used for food, some go to the Westshore’s New Roads Therapeutic Recovery Community, the Island’s only long-term therapeutic addiction recovery community which encouragingly, boasts a recovery rate of roughly 60%.

“We're incredibly thrilled with our results out of that program,” Hesketh said. “We've had the men's program operational for about five years, and the long-term addiction recovery success rate out of that program is close to double that of what a short-term program provides.”

The integrated addictions centre provides supports to men 19 years and older, and a new wing is expected to open within the next few weeks, offering 20 beds for the long-term—nine to 24 months—recovery of women, who will be separated from the men.

“We're thrilled to be able to provide that kind of recovery option for women as well,” Hesketh says. “It's crazy that it didn't exist before.”

The walk is Saturday, Feb. 22

Hesketh encourages people from all walks of life to sign up for either the Victoria Pandora or Victoria Westshore Walk at www.CNOY.org.

Participants can register online and seek sponsorship from friends, family, and coworkers. Hesketh says people from all backgrounds and demographics take part.

“Our seniors are some of our most incredible fundraisers,” she says. “They make a huge impact. Tons of school-age kids, and tons of young adults. It's a really kind of a beautiful mix.”