'A safe place': Iqaluit's newest shelter shows early signs of success

Iqaluit's newest emergency shelter has been open for three weeks and the people responsible for running it say early results suggest it's making a difference for vulnerable people in the city.  

The overnight shelter is a damp shelter, meaning it allows intoxicated people to stay the night. It's the only shelter in Nunavut to do so. 

Over the first two weeks, 43 different people have stayed at the shelter overnight. On an average night, between five and 15 people stay on one of the cots laid out for people to use.

The three conditions for staying are simple and posted on the walls: keep it safe, keep the peace and keep respect.

"Success for me is pretty simple: people are alive. People aren't freezing to death," explained Matthew Clark, who runs the shelter along with Dan Laffin. "When people are out on the land or are in the community at night in freezing temperatures, it's a worry.

Someone who is intoxicated is our neighbour, our brother, our sisters, our fathers.- Matthew Clark, Inukshuk Guardians Society

"We're not closing the door to anybody," he added. "It's a safe place, obviously it's safe for people who are intoxicated, but if you're not intoxicated, it's still [an] open door."

​Clark and Laffin work with the Inukshuk Guardians Society, the non-profit that's been contracted by Nunavut's Department of Family Services to operate the shelter until March 31 as a pilot program.

Ten paid staff members work in teams of three to open the shelter seven nights a week.The shelter opens every night at 8 p.m., but most clients show up closer to 11 p.m. or midnight, Clark explained.

Shelter open to all 

 When people arrive at the shelter, located at the 534 building, staff do basic intake; taking names, finding out why someone has come to the shelter and explaining the rules. From there, people spending the night are given a cot, pillow and blanket, with men and women staying in separate rooms.

In the morning, everyone is given a cup of coffee and is able to speak with staff about their needs or get help if they need it. 

So far, staff say there haven't been any issues associated with drunkenness, such as rowdiness or fighting.

"Certainly you get people who are happy and talkative, but really a couple words saying 'let's be quiet, people are sleeping,' that quiets them down pretty quick," Clark said.

Laffin and Clark said the new shelter doesn't just help people who may struggle with alcoholism, it benefits the community as a whole.

"Everybody deserves help, everybody deserves an opportunity," Clark said. "Keep in mind that someone who is intoxicated is our neighbour, our brother, our sisters, our fathers. They are our community. It'd be nice to do everything at once, but it's one small bite at a time."

Though intoxicated people are welcome at the shelter, Laffin said many of the shelter's clients are sober, they just don't have anywhere else to go or don't feel safe staying at home. 

"There's a lot of trauma, a lot of pain in the community," he said. "But we're also seeing people who are sober and are avoiding other individuals or other choices for them to seek safety."

He said many people who used the shelter this past weekend told him they simply didn't feel safe staying in their shacks during the blizzard. 

$130K to run until March 31

Though it's still in the early stages, the territorial government is spending $130,000 from family services' poverty reduction division to continue the pilot project until the end of March.

That means the shelter will continue to provide the service for the rest of the winter. During that time, Laffin and Clark will regularly meet with department officials to gauge how the shelter is working.

When that period's over, the government will make a decision on whether to continue keeping the shelter open.