In late 2024, a woman named Mary passed away in hospital after spending the winter night in the parking lot next to the Shoppers Drug Mart at Coxwell and Danforth. She was homeless, and stated that she felt safer sleeping there than in a shelter. She was described as an incredibly happy woman who never asked for more than she needed, and smiled at everyone who walked by.

In June 2011, a man named James Verone committed what is now being referred to as a Healthcare Heist. He robbed a bank, requested only one dollar, and proceeded to wait for police to arrive. This happened after he lost his job and didn’t have any healthcare, and tried to get healthcare inside jail.

I was thinking about these two stories recently, while Toronto was facing a massive thunder storm and subsequent tornado warning. While it was going on, I was at home frantically charging my phone so I could stay connected to my loved ones in case of a power outage, while staying far away from the windows in my house. I was watching videos the entire time of cars getting stuck in several feet of water, the DVP getting completely flooded, and TTC buses being flooded as well. 

What do storms like this mean for people who are unhoused? It means tents getting flooded, sleeping bags getting soaked and belongings washing away. Not to mention the risks to your health and the potential bodily harm. We can’t keep living in a society where people’s only options are living on the street, a shelter where they don’t feel safe, or jail. If those are the only options for so many people, how can we expect crime rates to go down?

As an adult, having family or other loved ones to lean on if you lose your job, need shelter, or any other support, is a privilege a lot of people don’t have. For people with no living relatives, people who aged out of the foster care system, or people with no nearby family, big life changes such as losing a job can be incredibly difficult to maneuver. Community is a huge part of any recovery process, and in times like this, it is really important that we show up for each other. 

That being said, if you have the means to support unhoused people while they recover from the recent weather impacts, please check out this Instagram post. They have provided information on how you can support people in Toronto. 

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