A Montreal homeless shelter was invaded by a group of wrestlers on Saturday, including the legendary Jacques Rougeau.
The grapplers spent the morning body slamming both residents and the people working there.
Don’t worry, though. It was all for a good cause.
“That was fun,” CARE Montreal founder Michel Monette said after being lifted into the air and slammed back-first onto a mat in the middle of the shelter by Rougeau.
Monette was far from the only victim. A photographer was slammed with a devastating powerbomb, and Rougeau’s disciples Jeremy Prophet and Sexy Eddie dished out punishment to residents of the shelter as well.
Most people receiving the moves would surely wince in pain, but all those getting up from the mat wore smiles from ear to ear.
It was all part of an event announcing Rougeau as the spokesperson of a fundraising campaign for CARE Montreal, which has transformed an old YMCA in Hochelaga-Maisonneuve into a homeless shelter.
“I want to help these people get back on their feet and find a job and have a good life,” Rougeau told Global News.
In the late ’80s, Jacques Rougeau and his brother Ray formed the Fabulous Rougeau Brothers in the World Wrestling Federation, now known as World Wrestling Entertainment. The pair became popular as a tag team, and Jacques enjoyed success in singles wrestling as well. He famously beat Hulk Hogan when he was wrestling for WCW in 1997.
Now, Jacques is squaring off with perhaps his toughest opponent yet. Rougeau is looking to put homelessness in a headlock by becoming the spokesperson for CARE Montreal’s latest campaign, called Wrestling Against Homelessness Together.
“It’s like a family here. They’re a family and they’re all helping each other too. There’s a lot of hope,” he said.
He was introduced to Monette by Journal de Montreal reporter Louis-Phillippe Messier, and the partnership emerged soon after.
Monette has enlisted Rougeau to help the shelter raise $500,000 for a program that puts unhoused people into apartments in an attempt to get them back on their feet permanently. The program is not funded by government subsidies.
“They pay a very little amount for the room, they have food included and also social workers that come and help them and coach them, so they can get out of the street,” Monette explained.
During the campaign launch, food and clothes were handed out to people experiencing homelessness. Politicians from all three levels of government were on hand to lend support.
With temperatures dropping, demand for shelters like CARE Montreal is expected to increase.
“We know that it’s going to be a long journey. It will be tough, but I think that we can achieve this,” said Monette.
After initially not wanting to be slammed by the wrestlers, he agreed to the onslaught in exchange for a donation.
A bidding war erupted between the local MNA, Quebec Solidaire’s Alexandre Leduc, and another attendee.
Leduc won the bidding at $1,000, but the other person also donated $1,000.
After being given a wrestling move called a suplex, shelter resident Jacques de Tremblay was ecstatic.
“That was one of the greatest moments of my life,” he told Global News.
Rougeau is planning to sleep in the shelter next week to get a real sense of what the residents experience. Many are big fans from childhood.
“You should see this guy talking with them,” said Monette. “He’s so candid and cool and people like him.”
Rougeau can’t wait to do his part in pinning homelessness down for the count.
“There’s light at the end of the tunnel, which makes it really amazing,” he said.
He said he was initially skeptical of getting involved with CARE, but when he understood the work they were doing to try to lift people out of homelessness for good, he didn’t hesitate to jump into the campaign.
Donations can be made online.