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Ruth Winter bursts into tears as she recalls the moment she learned she had secured a spot in temporary housing in Thunder Bay, Ontario.
“I just felt so much weight lifted off my shoulders,” Winter said. “It’s home, where I can shower every day, where I can eat.”
The member of Kingfisher Lake First Nation, an Oji-Cree First Nation about 350 kilometres north of Sioux Lookout, said she has been an alcoholic since she was 13. She lived on the streets of Winnipeg for three years and nearly died from a heart valve infection caused by intravenous drug administration with a used needle.
Now in recovery from alcoholism and drug addiction, she lives in one of two transitional housing facilities run by the Elizabeth Fry Society of Northwestern Ontario (EFSNWO). The organization supports women and gender-diverse people involved in the criminal justice system.
In the low-threshold, harm reduction-based housing, clients receive on-site support from staff members with real-world experience of the challenges they face as they work toward achieving their goals and obtaining long-term housing. Other social service agencies also offer programming there each week.
“Most of the employees have been where I am,” Winter said. “They actually help other people because they’ve been there.”
The Elizabeth Fry Society of Northwestern Ontario operates two transitional homes in Thunder Bay, Ontario, for women and gender diverse people involved in the criminal justice system. Here’s what the space means to staff and clients, and what support they want to see from the broader community to help people achieve their goals.
But long waiting lists for detoxification and treatment and a lack of affordable housing mean people don’t always get the help they need when they are ready, said Bonnie Aggamway, systems navigator at EFSNWO.
“When someone is ready to quit, they need to have immediate access to those resources. Sometimes that’s just not an option for people,” said Aggamway, a former EFSNWO client who has been addicted for more than a decade.
“No one should have to die because they couldn’t get into rehab, or because they tried and there wasn’t a bed for them.”
‘I didn’t know where to go’
Brittney Muir lived in EFSNWO’s transitional home on Archibald Street for two years. Before that, she had been homeless for about a year and said high rents and credit checks made it impossible to find a place to live.
“I’m just trying to get my own place and stay sober,” Muir said as she prepared to move out of the Archibald Street house into her own apartment.
Annette Wesley also said that she would not have known what to do if she had not heard about EFSNWO while she was in prison.
“I didn’t know where to go,” Wesley said. “I had nothing… all I had was the clothes on my back.”
The organization helped her access a portable housing allowance, and she now volunteers there, helping with cooking, cleaning, and gardening, and participating in the arts program.
Her next goal is to go back to school and become a social worker.
As Muir settles into her new place, her advice to others is, “Stay strong, believe in yourself. You can do it.”
Province responds to demand for detox beds
There are more than 1,350 applications on the waiting list for income-based rental housing in the District of Thunder Bay. Of those, more than 480 identify as homeless or in a transitional housing situation, according to the Thunder Bay District Social Services Administration Board (TBDSSAB). Meanwhile, the City of Thunder Bay says the average market rent For a one-bedroom apartment this is $1,054.
Bill Bradica, the outgoing CEO of TBDSSAB, told CBC News in an email that 173 transitional/supported housing units have been approved in the past five years. Of those, 132 are operational and 41 others are expected to be ready next year.
An additional 57 transitional units are being built. Housing partners have been pushing higher levels of government to increase support for transitional housing in Thunder Bay due to demand, Bradica said.
As for detox, the Balmoral Centre At 667 Sibley Dr., the city’s only withdrawal management program is operated. The 25-bed program, operated by St. Joseph’s Care Group, is open 24/7.
On Wednesday, St. Joseph’s Care Group announced that the Balmoral Centre and Crossroads, a recovery center offering pre- and post-treatment services, will swap locations. Detox beds will be moved to Crossroads’ Oliver Road location in the fall, while renovations begin to reopen Crossroads on Sibley Drive in the summer of 2025.
However, there are no updates on an additional 40-bed detox facility in Thunder Bay proposed by St. Joseph’s Care Group in late 2021.
CBC News has requested an interview with Ontario’s Minister of Mental Health and Addictions, Michael Tibollo, and asked about the status of the proposal as Thunder Bay moves toward highest death rate from opioid toxicity in the province.
Hannah Jensen, deputy director of communications for Health Minister Sylvia Jones, confirmed to CBC News that a proposal for a detox bed facility had been received by Ontario Health, a provincial Crown agency. At the time of publication, she was reviewing the status of that application.
‘Working with people where they are’
Kayla Baxendale, another EFSNWO systems navigator, says clients trust her because they know she has been through the same thing they have.
After a long-term relationship broke up, she became addicted and lost her job, car and home. With the support of her family, she received treatment outside the province and was subsequently granted housing.
Now that she’s on the other side of the system, her office in the house on Archibald Street feels like a second home.
“We promote programs and services that our clients need to acquire the life skills they need to potentially transition into long-term housing and to be able to maintain housing for an extended period of time,” she said.
“It’s just about working with people at the level they’re at.”
But it’s a lot of work for just a handful of staff to manage. Consistent funding and more support from the broader community are essential if they are to make a dent in the city’s addiction and housing crises, she said.
“We need to have that funding available so that we can provide these services to the most vulnerable populations so that they can get their lives back on track and avoid ending up back on the streets,” Baxendale said.
But none of this is possible if people have no food, clothing or shelter.
“It doesn’t matter if you’re an addict or a mental health issue — it’s a necessity for everyone,” Baxendale said. “People really need to come together and help each other and form a community.”
