NightShift 2020
by NightShift
Posted on December 28, 2024
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You can’t underestimate the power of a warm welcome. Being greeted and accepted where you’re at and as you are provides one with a sense of belonging, a sense of appreciation and a sense of community. This is a feeling that can be foreign to many people experiencing life on the streets.
In the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, when loneliness and isolation echoed through the streets of Whalley, NightShift Street Ministries opened up its multi-purpose room to host a daytime drop-in program two days a week. Careful to abide by health regulations and provincial restrictions, we set up tables 6 ft apart, measured temperatures and provided masks to all.
From the street, vulnerable men and women were welcome to come in, grab a coffee and a snack and relax. They were welcome to play card games, chat with our staff, or simply put their head down to have a safe space to rest.
Since we opened our Welcome Centre doors all those years ago, we have expanded our programming to operate every weekday afternoon. The Welcome Centre is a place our community has come to know and love. It’s turned into a lively hub, filled with smiling faces we’ve come to recognize as regulars.
In this photograph is Neil, a long-time friend of NightShift, who often drops into the Welcome Centre to say hi to staff and friends from the community. “I feel like I’m part of something at NightShift,” Neil says. “I have friends here, and it doesn’t matter if you have a lot of money or a little money. We need each other.”
We have seen so many friendships begin and blossom through our Welcome Centre. Friends from the street meeting and connecting, volunteers hitting it off, staff and street friends – so many relationships have been created through this program and we could not be more grateful.