The Street Help Homeless Centre of Windsor has strengthened its ability to keep those it serves warm and comfortable. A $4,000 grant in 2020 from District 7 Windsor-Essex goes towards purchasing 50 high-quality sleeping bags.

The grant will also enable Street Help to free up funds for other essential services, including computers to search for employment and housing, free clothing, shower and laundry facilities, hygiene products, daily meals, and outreach street patrols.

“This project supports the health and safety, through the cold weather months, of one of the most disadvantaged and needy groups in the community,” says Bill Bowden, president, District 7.

Street Help Homeless Centre receives no government funding and has no paid administrators. The not-for-profit relies on donations from the community of Windsor. Most of their volunteers are people who are homeless themselves.

The District 7 funding is part of RTOERO’s annual Community Grants program. Each fall, a committee of RTOERO members assesses the merits of each PSTO submission. For 2020, RTOERO funded 20 projects for a total of $77,000. These projects range from providing reading resources to a home for seniors, to supporting a youth camp, to reducing barriers for education in Cameroon.

Since the inception of Community Grants program 20 years ago, RTOERO has donated $1.6 million to more than 500 programs and projects.