Outreach van concerned for community after funding pulled

The West Central Women’s Resource Centre packed up their outreach van for the final time Sunday – forced to take their services off the road after learning they will no longer receive the government funding they’ve had since 2020.

The outreach team gives meals, supplies, and clothing to unhoused individuals while connecting them with services and helping them move into housing. They also monitor and save people from drug poisonings.

“We’re one of the only outreach teams that specifically serves women and gender diverse individuals, so that’s going to create a really huge gap in the system that we’ve been trying to fill over these last few years,” said Ren Armstrong, the team lead of West Central Women’s Resource Centre Outreach Program.

The province cut the funding to this van at the same time the city awarded an exclusive outreach contract to Main Street Project.

Armstrong is left with the question of who will be driving down these back lanes, looking to prevent drug poisoning deaths? She says Main Street Project can’t do it alone.

“I have a lot of respect for MSP. We work closely with them as well. But to me, it seems very unrealistic to expect one team to be able to take the brunt of all this work. Especially work that is so heavy,” said Armstrong.

At a housing announcement in Brandon last week, housing minister Bernadette Smith faced questions about their strategy to end homelessness, working without outreach teams like the West Central Women’s Resource Centre.

“The strategy is all about everybody being hands on deck, and when we look at 90 per cent of the folks being housed have been housed by Main Street Project. So, I have every confidence in the work that they’re doing,” said Minister Smith.

But Armstrong worries this could cost people their lives.

“I’m really, really hoping that that doesn’t happen. We’ve lost a lot of personal friends and community members, and some people have lost family members too. We’re really hoping that that’s not the case. But with the lack of support that already exists and the high rate of deaths that are already occurring, yeah, I’m concerned that that will be a reality,” said Armstrong.

The organization has a petition going around to ask the government to reinstate its funding. Armstrong is still hopeful they can get back on the road.