Homeless shelters overflowing – some people getting turned away

By Cole Deakin

A few homeless shelters in the Okanagan have been noticing a greater demand for their services in the last few weeks. The temperature is dropping and the homeless are looking for a hot meal and a warm bed.

“We opened last Sunday,” says Jan Schulz, Executive Director of Inn from the Cold, a local homeless shelter in Kelowna. “Since then we have been absolutely full every night.”

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "We opened last Sunday," says Jan Schulz, Executive Director of Inn from the Cold, a local homeless shelter in Kelowna. "Since then we have been absolutely full every night."

They’re even having to turn away five to 10 people every night.

“We’re turning away more people earlier than we have done in the past,” says Schulz. “It’s a real concern for us.”

A shelter in Vernon is also having issues with limited space.

READ MORE:  Vernon homeless shelter forced to turn people away

“We’ve never turned so many people away on such a frequent basis… especially women,” said Kelly Fehr, program director at the John Howard Society of the North Okanagan.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "We've never turned so many people away on such a frequent basis… especially women," said Kelly Fehr, program director at the John Howard Society of the North Okanagan.

Mats are thrown on the floor when the temperature goes below zero degrees, but even with the extra mats, it’s still not enough.