Eastern Townships 6th grader warms up Montreal streets

When 12-year-old Logan Laguheard a Montreal manhad died in the cold in early January, he felt compelled to do something about it. The Grade 6student from Knowlton, Que. had no idea how quickly his plan to help out would take off.

"I just really felt bad and I didn't want anything like that to happen again," he said. "So Igrabbed my sled and I went out knocking on doors."

Loganhas gathered hundreds of bags of warm clothes and outerwear in the Eastern Townships items he andhis mother have been giving to people in the city who don't have a roof over their head.

In the past 11days, two people have been found dead in Montreal asa cold snap grips southern Quebec. Overnight Thursday, a woman's body was discoverednear the Berri UQAMMetro station and last week,a man was found under an NDG overpass.

This week also marked one year since an Indigenous man, Raphael Andr,died inside a portable toilet, steps away from aParc Avenue shelter.

Shelters and drop-in centres across the city have struggledto keep up with high demand, especially during the winter, aspublic health restrictions have limitedhow many people they can take in. Many shelters also have a policy against allowing in anyone who is under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

Snowball effect

Logan's project may have begunwith him trudging around with his sled but it quickly snowballed.

His mother, Cynthia Royea, was surprised how quickly thesleeping bags, socks, mittens, boots and coats started piling up. Itwasn't long before she and her husband joined in.

"[Our neighbours] called friends thinking it was cute andsomebody said, 'Put it online!' The phone started ringing from there," she said.

Royeaposted on Facebook about what Logan was doing and they started storing donationson the second storey of a daycare owned by her husband.

"The upstairs is completely full the living room is full, the kitchen is full," she said.

Royealoaded the family SUV and made four trips to Montreal last week.

Last Saturday, she and Logan visited two Montreal shelters the Maison du Pre and the Old Brewery Missionand drovearound the city to connect their donations to people directly.

"Thejoy of letting somebody be able to pick what they need is beautiful," she said.

Donations haven't stopped pouring in Royea says people have beenlining up outside their homein Knowltonto drop things off.

Last weekend, theyrenteda U-Haul trailer but this Saturday, they're driving into town in an eight-metrebox truck.

"Blankets, sleeping bags, mitts and hats. They can go right in the back and take what they want," said Royea.

Catching on

Royeasays similar projects have sprung up in New Brunswick andthe United States and Logan has garnered attention from teachers in Kuujjuaq and people inJapan. Family, friends and strangers in Canada and around the world have been inspired by hisidea to give back.

Royea says neighbours in the Townships have helped gather donationsand one woman spent three days preparing meals for them to distribute this weekend. Another good Samaritan recentlyrented outa storage space and they plan to keep the project going as long as people keep giving.

Whether it's talking to a man in the Townships who donated his late wife's winter coat, or driving around Montreal withsomeone they met at a shelter to help out some of his friends, Logan says the personal connections have made the experience very rewarding.

"We take time to talk with them to know them," he said.

"Sometimes we laugh, sometimes we cry.It's really nice just knowing their story."