CMHA’s Merit Place is a 24-hour emergency shelter providing beds to those who need them most

“They’re busing the homeless in from Edmonton, don’t you know?” an acquaintance exclaimed.

Immediately, I had visions of criminality, poor souls overdosing on the sidewalks, and people sleeping in stairwells. But are busloads of homeless people actually coming to Kamloops … from Edmonton? In the search for truth, I reached out to the folks at Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA). More specifically, I spent several hours at CMHA’s Merit Place, a 24-hour emergency shelter.

“I think there’s a lot of misinformation,” said Candace Hiscock, Manager of Shelter Assessment and Triage at Merit Place. “A lot of the people that we get in shelter here, some are not using substances. Some are just going through a rough time. Some are seniors that just have nowhere else to go. We don’t necessarily have a lot of people that use substances.”

But are people getting bused into Kamloops?

“Absolutely not. It’s the odd person every month or so that we’ll get from out of community. It’s not a bus load,” said Hiscock.

“If somebody comes from out of community, and we can confirm that there’s somebody for them to go back to, where they come from, we will send them back,” said Brett Mineer, Communications and Engagement Coordinator at CMHA Kamloops. “We will buy bus tickets.”

This wasn’t my first time at a homeless shelter. The last time I reported from a shelter was before the pandemic. Previously, the smell was overpowering. Body odour from unbathed bodies being packed closely to other bodies on mats on the floor, mixed with the smell of overcooked eggs that were served to the patrons for breakfast.

One of the first things I noticed when I walked into the Merit Place was the lack of smell. The cots where residents slept had space — they were clean and they had partitions. On the edge of the partitions, some patrons had mementos — sunglasses, nicknacks, and photos — a reminder that the residents of this shelter are somebody’s child, sibling, or parent.

In the outdoor area, two residents were sweeping. “I feel everyone kind of respects each other [here],” said Hiscock.

Merit Place is the shelter in the old Greyhound Station. The shelter has 49 beds, currently all full. On average, Hiscock says one to five people are turned away due to a lack of beds.

“If we have a bed available, we would provide them with an intake,” said Hiscock, which includes filling out necessary paperwork and agreements. “They would shower. We would wash their laundry. Anything that couldn’t be washed, we would spray with bed bug spray. We do have a bedbug policy.”

“We do have guidelines that they have to follow,” said Hiscock. “One of them is a Good Neighbour Agreement — anybody that is an active client here, they cannot be loitering in community in the business area.

“If they’re observed loitering by staff, staff will have a conversation with them, let them know they’re getting a warning. So many warnings will lead to possible discharge. But they sign an agreement that they’re not going to be out in the business area.”

They also have rules about how many belongings a person can bring in. Patrons are limited to one bag and one bin.

Once someone gets a bed, employees try to meet the needs of that individual. “It’s very individualized. There’s not a lot of two cases that are identical. People don’t neatly fit into categories. The workers meet them where they’re at and work with them,” said Mineer. “But that’s also where there are bottlenecks that exist. There are people who are in shelter, who are ready to move on, but there’s nowhere for them to go,” Mineer added, explaining the need for transitional housing.

In addition to the Good Neighbour Agreement, Merit Place also has a curfew. Those who violate curfew are at risk of losing their bed. For that reason, it not likely that nighttime crimes are being committed by the patrons of Merit Place.

“Ninety-nine percent of the calls that we get for people loitering, most of the time, they’re not our clients,” said Hiscock.

But of course, there are those who are turned away from Merit Place. What becomes of them?

“We would arrange a bed. If we don’t have a bed available, we would call the other shelters to try to arrange a bed for them,” said Hiscock. “And then we would call Envision to come and pick them up and take them to the arranged bed.”

What is Envision?

“It’s a shuttle bus,” Mineer explained. “They’re doing the work of transporting people. They’re doing the street outreach — cold weather days, hot weather days, they’re driving up the alleys and looking down riverbanks.”

Space is one of the reasons why someone might be turned away from Merit Place, but there are other reasons as well. “Sometimes, they just exceed our level of care. Sometimes it’s very medical. Here, we’re not wheelchair accessible. So, if we have somebody that comes in a wheelchair, we cannot support them here,” said Hiscock. “We would refer them somewhere else.”

With respect to criminality, I asked if they have patrons recently released from jail. “Yes, we do. And sometimes, it’s very abruptly — somebody will just show up in a cab and they’ve come from KRCC (Kamloops Regional Correctional Centre),” said Hiscock. “We don’t turn them away. We obviously intake them.”

“With regards to not knowing people’s history when they come in, that is one of the challenges of this level of shelter is that you often don’t know the history of the person coming,” said Mineer. “So, you can only sort of mitigate some of the potential risks there through policies and procedures, and the agreements they sign on to.

“[Violence] it’s a rare occurrence. People know that their housing is at stake.”

Obviously, Merit Place has security cameras galore and trained staff. “Generally speaking, if people are treated with the same kind of respect as everybody else, you don’t run into problems,” said Mineer.

I spoke to several residents to get their perspective. When asked how they became homeless, it varies from person to person, but the overarching theme is it doesn’t take much.

“[I became homeless because of] a breakup and went through family court. I didn’t have any family or any friends here to rely on,” said Justin, one of the residents at Merit Place.

“[I’ve been homeless for] seven years, off and on. But it’s getting worse every year, given my health. And I just had a roommate have a heart attack and die, which put me back on the street,” said Shar, another patron. “I’m always in the hospital. I have asthma, COPD/emphysema.”

“Everybody thinks that you have to be a drug addict or a drunk, or something is wrong with you if you’re homeless,” said Shar.

Justin’s separation put him on the streets. For Shar, it was her health. Susan was one of the few people I spoke with who became homeless in large part due to addiction. “I met a lot of the wrong people … involved with the wrong people. I got into addictions,” said Susan.

“I was in and out of jail for thefts and the housing here … was a lot of hotels and slum kind of places where they kick you out … just, on a whim … and don’t give you good rent or your damage back.

“They [landlords] don’t want to rent to someone who is involved in drugs or someone who doesn’t have a job or good references,” said Susan. “I didn’t really know how to start dealing with all that … getting my ID back [after it was stolen] and … getting … the community’s trust back … respect back.”

All the homeless people I spoke with were Kamloops residents — from this community — not Edmonton.

Justin, Shar and Susan are optimistic about the future.

“I’ve got some good people backing me up right now. I’m keeping my fingers crossed, and … see what can happen for me this time,” said Shar.

“I’m quite optimistic,” said Justin. “I’ve been working with Work BC, and they’ve been helping me, kind of, gear towards getting myself back into my employment and getting out of this situation.”

“I’m pretty hopeful for myself,” said Susan. “I just know that I … am a strong person. I’ve been through a lot this far. I feel like I have a lot of will to survive and a will to find purpose in life. I have a lot of ideas and family I’d like to reconnect with.”

 “I figure until then, I’ll stay close to here, because I feel safe and it’s warm.”

Merit Place is always looking for donations. Items in need include blankets, bedding, towels and clothing, especially men’s clothing — boots, socks and underwear.

“I feel like in my career with CMHA, I’ve seen a lot of people succeed and it’s a good feeling for me. That transition is … it’s really powerful,” said Hiscock. “I think the most rewarding part is seeing the change in people when they’re supported.”