Poverty Awareness in York Region

"House of Hope" in final stages of renovations much done by paid homeless and at-risk workers. Volunteer tradesmen helped organize the crews.
A minimum wage worker working full time in Ontario makes $1,000 below the poverty line.
Former Golden Glove boxer John Fletcher lived here. He died in June homeless.
Ed sits on Fletch's former "couch" in his former "apartment" behind a donut shop in Newmarket.

What a disappointment our media here(York Region) is and predictable too. For that reason I have no excuse for setting up a formerly homeless person to be interviewed by the papers in hopes it might spark offers of work for him. I knew better if I was really honest with myself, but instead I delivered him to the slaughter. Have I finally become what I despise? Someone or something that uses the plights of others to further their own personal agendas?

Not that the article was that hard hitting on (sic)except that it humiliated him amongst his street friends. He had also asked that his former boss not be named, yet Chris Traber the Era Banner Reporter printed it anyway. In addition he wrote the story without even coming out personally to meet him, instead sending a photographer/videographer alone who informed me the story was already written. I controlled (asked) the questions put to him for the YRMG video, so it at least hit hard on some points - providing they didn't sensor, I mean edit it to death - instead of what this article turned into, which was a poster for propping up the shelters. We were very clear this was to be about next steps for the homeless and not another commercial for the local shelters. Thanks to our efforts last year in the media and beyond, the York Region shelters did well with donations and got extended to 7 days from 5 at Inn from the Cold, yet we've never heard a word from those running them ..I don't know maybe to say thanks or invite us to something?

YRMG Writer Traber had contacted me originally seeking a story and pic of homeless people and how they deal with insects etc in the summer living outdoors, but I wasn't going to work too hard on that storyline as I didn't feel it compelling enough to be asking someone to expose themselves publicly. I informed him that since the last article we set them up with (winter), some of those guys that were homeless we've now gotten jobs in some cases, places to live, given phone numbers through which they've been enabled, trained for work and on, and so asked can we not do a story that spoke about these things that PACC has been involved in? Real difference making via trying to get people back into the loop of life instead of focusing on shelters (again). THESE PEOPLE HATE LIVING IN THEM I(we) told the writer but that never got printed. Nothing against writing about shelters but this was not their time. Why not touch on assisting people out of them?

I mentioned to the writer and photographer that a former local golden glove boxer John Fletcher who lived on the streets had died in June homeless, and that his story would make a great piece about a former champion boxer who became an alcoholic and who'd had a wife and 3 kids and a house which he gave her when he moved to the streets. He was well known and lived behind the Tim Horton's Plaza at Davis and Leslie where his stuff still lies - his can for cigarette butts untouched and filled with water and his bench and green tarp makeshift tent still in place. The street guys tell me no one goes there anymore since he died, his home left intact as a tribute to his memory almost, his presence eerily looming. He was dead 6 days before they found him. This was a story! I offered the photographer to go right across the street from where we were to take some shots of his former "home" but he declined - instead opting for the beer store "money shot" of our hapless victim toting recycled cans he collects for money while unemployed. As Old John Fletcher would say, " It's 60/40 for the good guys."

Even the quote attributed to me does not even resemble what I said regarding contract work - my quote should have read, " What ever happened to people getting a job with a company and that was their job, instead of constantly having to work around contracts which can end at anytime. People need full time sustainable work." as the photoed subject person had lost his contract job (PACC got him it, also left out of the article) after 7 months - but making barely minimum wage and then not qualifying for EI makes one vulnerable to homelessness. This could have been their other focus, but no, it was determined to follow it's script to the end, homeless person be damned.

The facts are wrong too - first they quote provincial election candidate Christina Bisanz as apparently having " first hand experience" from her volunteer work at Belinda's Place - a women's shelter that is not even open yet! - and then claims we have no shelter beds for single women in York Region whatsoever and that we turned away 500 last year from getting shelter. Funny, an earlier issue of the same Era-Banner stated that it was 220 women, but nevertheless what they leave out is the fact that its not 500 or even 220 at all, in fact the same person(s) calling an abuse shelter mistakenly and who then gets referred to a youth shelter or a family shelter etc would still get counted as someone refused shelter in these stats. In addition, the same people calling numerous times throughout the year are treated as different people artificially skewing the numbers. Mark my words the women they get will be shipped here from outside York Region. The same article had stated over 1200 men were refused. No shelter calls for them. They want homes not shelters anyway.

Ms. Bisanz also seems unaware York Region has INN From The Cold as well as OUT of the Cold which both house single women, and the youth shelters for single women up to 26 years also count I would think? Most others are picked up by the various women's abuse or family shelter categories, leaving the men -with a mere 25 full time bed in the entire York Region - by far the most in need. No mention of that in the article or from publicity seeking Bisanz. No quotes from happy shelter dwellers either, just all the owners and 'volunteers".

The article finishes with a bang quoting Frank Klees that poverty needs real attention and stating that it is "definitely an issue for the election." Who is he kidding? He did nothing to contribute to the square-table on poverty but spout " just give them a job", and has sat face to face with myself and many others looking for ways for people to get out from the misery of poverty - from those in wheel-chairs, to those with (mental)health issues, low income workers, single parents, cancer survivors and on we brought before him ,yet MPP Klees' only concession was to agree it would be hard to live on the income one gets from welfare while supporting the humiliating use of food stamps to assist. This would be his solution. Of course no word back from his camp yet on their thoughts on the Poverty Free Ontario Platform. His " just give them a job" solution doesn't even guarantee one from poverty here anymore. That's how far we've digressed.

Nope, and the York Region Media Group article couldn't have bothered to mention PACC and detail some of efforts we've made in the community perhaps or maybe mention the fact we hosted and organized the region's 1st ever social audit in history as well as co-authored the report (Behind The Masks) or that we organized the 1st ever anti-poverty "protest", or some bone for us. We've never had a story focus of any kind, yet served them award winners on a plate and even while offering real proof of making a difference still no fluffy story about us like everyone else gets ...yet still we plod on... with no government funding... and meantime the article listed organizations pretending to offer non-existing counselling and "housing support" and who received several hundred of thousands of dollars recently to place people into nowhere - as there is no affordable housing available!..while leaving source PACC's contact info out of it! Thanks! Geez, we could open the " House of Hope" with affordable units and in-house REAL supports with job skills training for only $50,000, and then sustained it by running it as having also a built-in business with some newly trained paid workers living there...had I been able to get some attention to a story on it and maybe a fundraiser ...I've asked about it but nothing to date ...and yet the Hoedown gets 6 weeks of promos everywhere you turn!...or money from the Region. Ha.

But it was I who gambled that man's integrity, and for that I'm no better than the newspaper people. Shame on me. Perhaps I've lost my way and am not fit to lead anymore.

PACC will be hosting an evening of open Stage Entertainment and handing out a $1,000 youth education award on Friday Sept 23 at Wild Flowers Cafe om Newmarkets (225) Main St South. Proceeds to PACC. 7 pm - 9:30 pm. Voluntary cover charge. Entertainers welcome. Feature Acts include Bestov Elvis, Singer/composer/guitarist Fred Joly, Rapper Sensations Khryme Syndicate!

Powerful PACC Production....Pictorial Reminder


Tom out