As the reality of winter begins to settle in, work is being done at the Saskatoon Tribal Council’s permanent Emergency Wellness Centre on Fairmont Drive to get ready for about 106 people in need of shelter and services. Tribal Chief Mark Arcand expects they will be moving in on November 15th.

The STC has been approached by people who want to help with cash donations, and everyone is welcome to do so, but Arcand says the challenge right now is they don’t have official charity status. He understands that for those larger donations in the tens and hundreds of thousands of dollars, people and organizations will want a receipt which the STC can’t give right now, although Arcand hopes they will have that ability in the next year or so.

He also understands there are people who don’t want a shelter in their neighbourhood and responds that homelessness is a community issue, not a downtown or a 20th Street issue. Arcand says the Emergency Wellness Centre is about helping people, and turning a blind eye to the problem, not having it in your neighbourhood, doesn’t make the social issues disappear.

Tribal Chief Arcand has a vision for next spring at the shelter. The STC plans to buy ten to fifteen tipis for the grounds, within the large fenced-in area, to add more room during the warmer months. That way, they can help more people, while still giving them access to the other services the Wellness Centre offers, like help to find housing, or to deal with mental health and addictions.

Arcand says they could add an extension on to the building, but that is a few years down the road, and the shelter on 20th Street is still in the works.