Contribute
Everyone has something they can do to help end homeless. A smile and kind words to someone having a difficult day can go a long way. Below are some other ideas.
Contribute Ideas
The intent of our feedback form is to gather your ideas and suggestions about how to make a sleeping cabin community successful. If you have other ideas about how to end homelessness, we would love to hear them!
Contribute to Dental Fund
One of the biggest barriers we face is enabling people to exit homelessness with a healthy smile. Ontario Works (OW) and Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP) benefits do not provide enough funding for complex dental needs. We have started a GoFundMe to help our residents build healthy smiles.
Contribute Time
Engaging with people in from all areas of the Kingston community, in meaningful conversation and activities, will help people without homes build resilience. Volunteers will be encouraged to participate in OLS’s trauma informed education and courses.
Types of volunteer activities could include:
Special occasion meal provision
Informal Life Skills education (cooking, doing laundry, meal-planning, budgeting etc)
Working within a ‘sponsorship’ plan, similar to the way refugees were welcomed to Kingston; a small team working closely with one resident to help them settle in and thrive.
Helping fill educational gaps
Furnishings and soft goods, bedding, personal touches
Skills training- knitting, music, carpentry, needlework, breadmaking, coding etc
Entertainment- movie screenings, workshops, musical performances
Contribute Items
Our goal is to make our cabin community feel like a home as much as possible. We'd like to provision each cabin according to the residents' preferences. To help residents transition to permanent housing, when they get a permanent home, they'll be able to take the items with them. We will update our Cabin Community Needs List frequently and as residents request items.