Look closer
What if it were you?
This is your storY.
When the temperature drops, our survival instincts kick in and tell us to get warm. Bundle up. Go inside.
For people facing homelessness, this isn't an option.
Tonight, you're here to look closer – to experience a taste of what it's like to have no safe, warm place to go.
It's getting dark. You're about to face your first night on the streets.
YOUR STORY STARTS HERE
A taste of warmth
It's been a long day. The longest yet since you were forced out of your apartment this morning. What an embarrassment you are. And you still haven’t found anywhere to sleep tonight. The wind is getting worse, and your fingers feel stiff. Your boots haven't kept the snow out, so now your socks are soaking. You feel chilled to the bone.
In the distance, you see a van with circles on the side that seems to be giving out food and stuff. Your stomach growls in anticipation of a warm meal. When you get there, one of the workers hands you a bag with hot soup, sandwiches, cookies, and a bottle of water. You realize it's the only time today that someone's asked you how you're doing and what you need. The worker gives you information about nearby shelters, then checks the van for boots and offers ones that are warm and dry. She throws in a bundle of fresh socks, too. A taste of warmth!
62,135 Van Stops
This past year, Ve’ahavta’s Mobile Jewish Response to Homelessness (MJRH) outreach vans made 62,135 stops to deliver hot meals, hot coffee, and essential supplies including clothing, sleeping bags, and hygiene kits, to people facing homelessness across the city.
6:15PM -6°C (feels like -11°C)
Access denied
NO BEDS AVAILABLE
The closest shelter is 8 km away. You don't have bus fare, so you start walking. The new boots are good – a welcome comfort. One of the bags you've packed half your life in breaks, and you're equally devastated and relieved. Your arms are sore. You can't keep carrying it all, but this is all you have left. You try shoving more clothes and at least one extra water bottle into the other bag and keep moving.
The wind isn't letting up; neither is the sinking feeling in your stomach as you reach the shelter. You ask the woman at the door about space, and it takes a beat for your mind to catch up to the response you get. The chill seems to have reached your brain. They're full for the night. She suggests a warming center a few blocks away. There's not much more you can do but follow her directions.
As you walk back down the street, you take a moment to look around. It's quiet. A car drives by, but otherwise, there's nobody else out. Just you against the cold.
8:08PM -8°C (feels like -12°C)
1 of 2 people
Can’t access GTA shelters when they need them
ROAD TO NOWHERE
YOU CAN STOP, BUT YOU CAN’T STAY
The warming centre isn’t far from the shelter, but you get turned around for a few blocks before you finally get there. There’s a crust of frost forming on your glove where you keep wiping your eyes. You feel empty. Not hungry, just too scared to be hopeful.
The centre looks open, but when you get closer, you notice a bunch of people hanging around outside. It’s hard to overhear what some of them are saying over the sound of your chattering teeth.
The man at the door says there’s no space, but you can wait outside for the shuttle headed to a different warming centre in Scarborough. You’ve never been to Scarborough. It seems far, and what if there’s no space when you get there?
That’s when the shuttle turns the corner, and you realize two things:
1) at least the transport will be warm.
2) you don’t really have a choice.
9:30PM -15°C (feels like -19°C)
Hypothermia can set in at air temperatures of 10°C to -1°C.
Toronto’s four warming centres only open once temperatures reach -5C.
NEW HOPE
YOU ARE NOT ALONE
Your nose and ears are stinging as they warm up, and it’s the best feeling. The Scarborough warming centre is just a big room with not much in it, but it’s toasty. You leave your coat with the person you sat behind on the shuttle and go to the bathroom. You come back and find that person gone—and your coat is gone with them. You clutch your bag tightly and try not to nod off, even after the staff have said you can’t sleep there. It’s hopeless, though; you’re so tired. The sinking, empty feeling returns when a staff member approaches to tell you you have to leave.
Outside, without your coat, the wind is vicious. Headlights across the street catch your attention. It’s the van with the circles again—the same as the one from Toronto, with a few people lined up getting food. You shuffle over as quickly as your exhaustion will let you, hoping it doesn’t drive away before you get there. You tell the worker on the van how your night has been, that you don’t know what to do, and ask if they have a coat.
He disappears into the back of the van and emerges with a big winter coat, a hat, a fresh pair of mitts, a heavy-duty sleeping bag, and hand and foot warmers. He puts everything carefully into a bag and then offers a hot coffee to warm you up. “Oh, and here,” he says, holding out a card. “Call this number in the morning. Our case managers will be expecting to hear from you.” He smiles. “Don’t worry. You’re not alone.”
As you shrug into the new coat, you blink back your tears at the worker’s kindness. The warmth of the coffee mixes with the smallest bit of hope in your belly. Even if that covered bus shelter is the best you can do for tonight, you know that tomorrow will be a better day because someone is out there, waiting to help you.
95% success rate
Ve’ahavta’s pre-employment programs have a 95% success rate and set our graduates on a path to sustainable self-sufficiency, whether through a job, further education, or specialized treatment. The industry average is 75%.
1,470 volunteers
Our vital programs are powered by our amazing team of 1,470 volunteers and growing.
11:10PM -20°C (feels like -25°C)
Thank you for LOOKING CLOSER and for taking this journey on the Coldest Night of the Year.