There is really only one word to describe the Cold Wet Weather Mat Program which ran in Port Coquitlam during December – SUCCESS.
The Mat Program was host by the Northside Foursquare Church. Thanks to their leadership, Foursquare was the first Church in the Tri-Cities to step up for the program. The City of Port Coquitlam in turn was the first city in the area to pass the bylaws neccessary to allow the program to happen quickly.
In short, homeless folks were picked up in a van at various points in the Tri-Cities, driven to the church, given a meal, a place to sleep, an opportunity to speak with councilors, and a drive back to their pick-up point.
In PoCo, there was very little opposition to the program once the details were outlined at a public hearing in October and a public information session in November (no matter what the one of the local newspapers reported) so it was not surprising that at the follow-up session tonight there were NO complaints about the program. Granted, only one person not connected to the Church, program or Tri-Cities Homelessness Task Force showed up – the feedback the Pastors received by going door-to-door earlier this month proved that the Mat Program had no negative impact on the community.
Here are some random points from the December time frame:
- 408 mats were laid out during the month to accomodate 48 men and 12 women
- the busiest night saw 22 people stay at the church
- 11 people are no longer homeless and 9 are in drug / alcohol recovery programs
- folks who used the program said it was safe, drug free and the food was awesome
- most of the neighbours did not realize the program was actually in operation due to how quiet the program ran
The lessons learned during this first year will certainly allow the program to be even better in December of this year. Congratulations to all involved in taking the first of many steps to combat homelessness in the Tri-Cities.
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