A report from United Way of Bruce Grey said local charities are seeing their burden intensify thanks to an unprecedented convergence of crises.
Executive Director Francesca Dobbyn explained stable, consistent funding is part of the answer to address the opioid epidemic, housing instability, and homelessness.
"There's a lot of programs working their butts off, trying to help," Dobbyn pointed out. "We've got some real challenges, you know, and lots of barriers in our community around the funding for some of these programs, as well as the need climbing. You know, the economy is tanking."
She added more than 25 agencies, charities, programs, and municipalities are united in their mission to combat these urgent issues. Dobbyn explained that despite the remarkable support from donors, the region is grappling with an over-reliance on charitable organizations to provide essential services—ranging from food and shelter to medical care.
"It's a real challenge for a lot of the partners, who are charities, to address these issues without sustainable, stable funding," Dobbyn revealed. "There's always this kind of like, well, we'll just, you know, run a food drive, and that'll solve the problem. But this is an ongoing, chronic issue, and we need more help."
Of the 22 food banks in the region, many are reporting significant increases in requests for help. The Wiarton Salvation Army recently put out a call for donations as their shelves were essentially bare of food.
"You know the soup kitchen here in Owen Sound, OSHaRE, is averaging almost 500 meals a day. They did 17,000 meals in July, and they did 20,000 meals in the first year they operated, which was eleven or twelve years ago," Dobbyn shared. "So that's a huge climb in need. And we just wanted to say, this is this data. This is what's going on, and we've had five fatal overdoses in the last six weeks."
Dobbyn stressed that without sufficient resources, their ability to meet the needs of the community will continue to be compromised.
"A food bank stops you from being hungry today, because you get food for today," she added. "And same with the soup kitchen, you get a meal, you get a lunch, you get a dinner, and then, tomorrow you're going to need another lunch and another dinner. It doesn't solve food insecurity. It solves hunger. It doesn't solve food insecurity."
She pointed to studies that show that food insecurity is solved by income solutions, not by charity. She went on to say that more food drives help out short-term, but changing income levels is the only way to reduce food insecurity.
The report showed that combined, the Short Term Shelter Program and Safe N Sound’s Out of the Cold Evening Program provided overnight service to an average of 56 people per night in December 2023. And with the purchase of a motel to provide emergency housing, the county expects to see between 350 and 400 unique individuals accessing the program within a year.
As of May 31, 2024, 162 households were actively experiencing homelessness and on the By-Name List. Of these, 139 were experiencing chronic homelessness.
"I've got people with cancer, who are homeless. I have people who've been reno-evicted," she said. "We've got a lot of people moving up from the city. So a lot of people are selling their houses because they're cashing in on good prices for real estate, which is fine, you know, that's what you do in life. But lots of people are losing their place as a direct result, and then they end up on the street."
Dobbyn said the collective efforts of local charities, agencies, programs, and municipalities, are making strides in addressing the opioid crisis, housing instability, and homelessness.
She said every contribution counts including donations, volunteering, or advocating for long-term funding solutions.