100 local homeless people helped in ‘Just One Day’

Sault Ste. Marie Helping Hands, in partnership with Save Our Young Adults from Drug Abuse (SOYA) held an event billed as ‘Just One Day’ to provide for the Sault’s homeless people during the weekend, providing more than 100 needy individuals with food packets, winter clothes, boots, toys, books, kitchenware, sleeping bags and other items.

The clothes and other packages were bundled in the laneway beside Sault Ste Marie Helping Hands, located at 146 Gore St., from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, observing COVID safety protocols such as social distancing

Non-profit organization Khalsa Aid Canada provided a large donation of food packets.

People were also offered hot coffee, cookies, and muffins.

“We are thankful to all our beautiful community and all the volunteers including the Ken Brown Recovery Home, without whom the event would not have been a success,” said Wendy Gutcher, Sault Ste. Marie Helping Hands founder, in a news release.

“We are glad that we were able to help so many people in need. Winters in the Sault are pretty harsh and we are really happy that we could provide warm winter clothing to as many people as we could. If someone was left and could not come in, they can always come by our store at Gore Street, from 10 am to 1:30 pm, Monday through Thursday. We still have plenty of warm clothes to offer.”

“We are all in this together. Please help us help our city’s most vulnerable. Everyone is someone’s child,” stated Connie Raynor Elliot, SOYA founder.

Donations were made by Food Basics, Country Style, Frank De Marco Masonry, Algoma Steel, YesYouCan Employment Consulting, Your Place Jon, World Cars Kia, Veronica Mejia Valle, Khalsa Aid Canada and community members.