A small house in the middle of Sault Ste. Marie is trying to make a big difference in the lives of those less fortunate.
This past October, the group known as Sault Ste. Marie Helping Hands moved into a new location at 112 Crawford Avenue. The house, originally designated as one of the city’s four local community hubs by the Services Department of Sault Ste. Marie, is now packed wall-to-wall with food, clothing and household items — all made possible through donations.
Mike Nadeau, chief executive officer for the District of Sault Ste Marie Social Services Administration Board, endorsed the one-year lease for the former community hub in the fall of 2017 after the group incorporated itself earlier in the year. “We didn’t want to see it (Helping Hands) go away,” he said.
The agreement will be revisited when the lease expires in the fall of 2018.
“We don’t own the house or anything,” said Nikki Funk, who currently sits on the group’s board of directors. “We have a year contract to basically kind of prove ourselves just to see where it’s going to go.”
People in need of items at the house are asked to fill out a form in order to describe their needs, as well as to provide Helping Hands with tangible evidence that people are utilizing its services.
Funk estimates that anywhere from 30-70 people will come to 112 Crawford Ave. on any given day. Wednesdays are the most popular days, when the group serves hot meals like beef stew, chili and soup at the house.
Wendy Gutcher, chief executive officer for Sault Ste. Marie Helping Hands, said that although the group keeps some statistics, it doesn’t ask for specifics out of respect for the privacy of the people who use the service.
“We don’t want to see that you’re on ODSP (Ontario Disability Support Program) or Ontario Works, we don’t want that,” Gutcher said. “That’s not our business to know your personal situation.”
Common needs are trending toward shoes, winter boots, ski pants and winter jackets during this time of year. The Sault Ste. Marie Helping Hands Facebook group is also active in assisting people with their requests.
“We try to give it to them, and if we don’t have it, I will do a posting up on my site. I’ll look for it, and I’ll try my hardest to find it for you,” Gutcher said. “I just want to make sure that everybody’s going to be OK.”
Helping Hands will be offering discounted haircuts - with time donated by local professional hairstylists - during its Clean Up for Christmas event at 112 Crawford Ave. on Dec.19.