Grace Place is getting ready for its annual Out of the Cold program - Tbnewswatch.com

THUNDER BAY – Grace Place is setting up its fifth annual Out of the Cold program, which is going to start a bit early this year, offering overnight emergency shelter to people in need starting this October.

“The Out of the Cold program is very successful in getting people inside from the cold, but yeah, we decided to extend it because numbers are high as well as, it is cold in October,” said Melody Macsemchuk, Out of the Cold program manager.

“We had the extra funds from the coldest night of the year walk that we held in the city here of Thunder Bay, so we decided that was a good way to use those funds.”

The Out of the Cold program works with other shelters in Thunder Bay to make sure everyone has a warm place to sleep during the Northwest’s colder seasons.

“It’s a collaborative effort with the other media shelters, Shelter House and the Salvation Army, so, our clients are referred from those organizations and once they arrive here, we do an intake with them, take some information down, the first few times, there’s a little bit more information to be taken down,”  Gary Macsemchuk said.

“After that, it’s fairly routine, their winter clothes are put into a bin and their possessions and things, and they come in and the first thing they want to do is basically eat, and at that point, they're given a bed and the opportunity to shower and to clean up and have their clothes laundered, it’s a well-run process and the workers do very well.”

Staff and volunteers at Grace Place try to keep the process the same overnight to provide a sense of consistency to the people who use their service.

“Consistency is important when dealing with clients that have addiction issues and mental health issues, and just, consistency of the process here at Grace Place through the overnight program is very very important because that leads to that safety, it brings peace to the people, to our clients, and it brings the best out of them,” Gary Macsemchuk said.

Grace Place is able to offer 15 beds as well as three of what they call Compassion mats which are available depending on the situation. People who use the service are given supper and breakfast in the morning as well as a bagged lunch for them to take with them when they leave.

For more information about the services offered by Grace Place as well as to find opportunities to volunteer or to donate, visit their website.

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Grace Place is getting ready for its annual Out of the Cold program - Tbnewswatch.com
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