Living in a tent encampment is difficult at the best of times, but it’s especially rough during the winter, when it’s hard to find respite from the biting cold and wind.
But with the holidays around the corner, Josh Punk, a resident at the Cobequid Road ballfield in Lower Sackville, N.S. encampment, said the season has been “surprisingly heartwarming.”
“There’s a lot of really excellent involvement from community members. There’s a lot of donations, there’s a lot of kind wishes,” he said.
“Just a lot of support from random folks that I’ve never met before, I’ve never seen before, coming by, just being supportive and kind.”
Punk, 34, is one of 33 people currently staying at the ballfield. He’s been there “on and off” since the summer and has been there pretty much full-time for the last two months.
“It’s been cold, it’s been harsh,” he said.
“I would like to have some sort of permanent housing that I can afford… That’s something that I would like to see for everyone here,” Punk continued. “I believe that everyone here deserves to have a nice home… It’s just a ridiculous situation that we’re all in.”
Two recent back-to-back storms have “wreaked havoc” at the ballfield, said Nikki Greer, president of the Gated Community Association, a volunteer group dedicated to assisting the residents at the ballfield.
She said high winds have destroyed the ballfield’s food supply tent and left several tents in tatters, including some ice fishing tents that were recently purchased.
“The residents actually do take pride in building their structures,” she said. “So to have that completely ruined by the weather, it’s very disheartening.”
Still, the encampment is rebuilding “slowly but surely” with the help of the community. Greer said monetary donations they’ve received will enable them to purchase 15 more high-quality, water-resistant and insulated ice fishing tents.
They’ve also received donations of other items, including gifts, toiletries and food.
“The community support has been fantastic, it’s been incredibly heartwarming,” she said.
“The amount of Christmas wishes and donations being made to the residents have made them feel really special, because they are, and it’s been incredible to watch.”
In fact, they’ve received so many donations of supplies that they’ve had to pass along the goodwill.
“We’ve actually received too many gifts in some situations,” Greer said. “So we’ll be taking the excess to other encampments.”
She said they also have plans to put up a 20-foot Christmas tree — once the weather finally decides to cooperate — and host a Christmas dinner for the ballfield’s residents.
Greer is also optimistic that the community support won’t slow down once the holidays are over.
“We’ve built such a fantastic support group. The donations were there prior to Christmas, I’m sure the donations are going to be there after Christmas as well,” she said.
In addition to food and shelter, the Gated Community Association also helps the encampment residents with personal development and goals.
But what’s most needed, Greer said, is more compassion.
“The next step is continuing to alleviate some of the stigma and bias that is being placed upon residents who are unhoused,” she said.
“We want to keep leading in that direction, because some of the potential that a lot of these individuals have is significant.
“Everyone comes from a very diverse background with diverse skillsets, and it’s really about working with them and harnessing on those — identifying what their goals are and helping them progress.”
Greer noted the holidays can be difficult for people experiencing homelessness, many of whom may not have families to spend time with.
But she said the residents of the tent encampment have formed their own family.
“This truly has become a community in and of itself, so they’re all very supportive of each other,” she said.
As for Punk, he said he’s blown away by the “incredible” community support he’s seen, but added more supports are needed from those at the top.
“There’s so much willingness to help, and so much consideration and effort for so many people, (but) it’s disheartening that we all pay taxes to have that kind of thing be done in an organized, structured way,” he said.
“If that was the case, we wouldn’t have to have so much homelessness for so many people.”
— with files from Megan King