Family and friends honour 63 lives lost to homelessness in 2023

The tragic cost of London, Ont.'s homelessness and addictions crisis was front and centre at a downtown church Wednesday evening as dozens gathered to remember those who have died.

As of Sunday, homelessness has killed at least 63 people in London, theLondon Homeless Coalition and Ark Aid Street Mission estimate. The two organizations behind the memorial gathering say 260 people have died since 2020.

"Those are known and identified people who have died. They're people who are connected to services and their death is linked to homelessness," said Sarah Campbell, Ark Aid's executive director.

"I believe that there's many more in our community who have died, where we don't identify it as linked to homelessness, but are in fact a result of their lived experience of being unhoused."

Each death is a life cut shortpeople who livedunknown to most Londoners, but not to those who loved them. Few eyes in the church were dry as the names of the 63 who died were read aloud. Many in attendance had themselves had people dear to them taken by homelessness.

Among them was Nicole Fairbanks, who lost her uncle. Acoustic guitar in hand, she performed several songs for the service, including Folsom Prison Bluesby Johnny Cash. "Everybody at Ark Aid Mission that knew my uncle knew him as Cowboy,so I should probably play a country song," she said.

Listening two rows back was Rosemary McLean Van Gelderen. Asked to speak during the service, she recounted the simple Christmas gifts her father would give to a few men in the communityand her daughter's own struggles with homelessness, addictionand mental health.

Van Gelderen said her daughter became homeless in July 2022and is now at home recovering from a fentanyl addiction. Living an hour outside London, there is a "strong pull" to return to the city and the street community, she said.

"That's going to be hard to overcome. I'd like to see her go into a program, but she's not really for that...I'm helping her through detox right now, and we're being supported by Exeter CMHA," she said.

London Morning9:07What's being done to keep the unhoused warm?

Hundreds of people are sleeping unsheltered in London as the nights get colder. London Morning spoke to the deputy city manager in charge of homelessness, Kevin Dickins, about what's being done to keep people warm.

Van Gelderen is offering support herself, co-leading a weekly Tuesday support group with Ark Aid's chaplain, Rev. Michael Bechard, for those who know someone struggling with addiction.

"There is a large church community in London that servesthe poor, but the church needs to do more andour community needs to do more. They need to recognize that these are someone's mother, father, daughter, son, sibling, and that they need our compassion."

At the end of the service, congregants left tea lights next to a flower bouquet and a photo of Olivia Clark. The 31-year-old died in April after the makeshift tent she was using caught fire on the sidewalk in front of Ark Aid as she and others burned hand sanitizer to keep warm.

City officials estimated in November that approx 2,000 people were living unhoused in London, with several hundred expected to stay in outdoor encampments due to a lack of shelter space.

Ark Aid is operating 120 overnight shelter spaces for the city's cold weather response to homeless. Roughly half areup and running,with 65 set for mid-January at Bishop Cronyn Memorial Church. Fifteen came online on Monday at CMHA Coffee House.

The winter spaces are an interim measure as the city's larger response to homeless system is ramped up. The plan is to open 10 to 15 hubs providing basic needs and stable housing support.

City officials told CBC News last week that one hub with respite beds was opened at the start of December by Youth Opportunities Unlimited, while 69 highly supportive housing units had opened. The city has planned to open 100 by the end of the year, and 600 in three years.

The city has said it also plans to continue operating two service depots through the winter. Four service depots opened this summer to help those living in encampments, handing out supplies for basic needs.