Cold enough for you? The recent spate of chilly weather, while arguably a more proper seasonal reflection for the month of January, should mean more to us than simply thinking about maybe plugging in that vehicle so it's OK to start the following morning. The sad truth is, in various pockets of the city, some people have absolutely no choice but to sleep outdoors - even in this kind of weather.
To the people and organizations dedicated to those initiatives designed to combat the effects of the outside elements on the homeless, a genuine salute is extended.
Two such examples of those initiatives with strong North York ties were recently profiled in this newspaper. The first concerns a group of volunteers who gathered one Saturday morning earlier this month at The Bargains Group warehouse on Caledonia Road for the packing of 'survival kits' for the homeless. Funds for the kits - which include such items as gloves, socks, scarves and sleeping bags - had been raised previously through a hockey tournament featuring several former professionals, with donations from a number of the businesses taking care of the rest. The packed kits were to be distributed to social agencies for distribution last weekend.
As for the other, North York's Beth Emeth Bais Yehuda Synagogue kicked off its annual eight-week Out of the Cold program last week. While the Out of the Cold program has incarnations in several locations city-wide, the synagogue site is the only one located within North York. Every Monday evening to Tuesday morning for the next few weeks, the synagogue is able to accommodate 90 adult guests for dinner and 30 for an overnight stay. Guests are also able to interact with volunteers and obtain needed clothing. Volunteers are still being sought for some of the program's shifts; those interested can call 416-633-3838, ext. 246.
So is there a lesson to be learned here? Maybe not so much a lesson as a reminder: that charitable giving and charitable actions, be they through funds, time or resources, are welcome any time, but different times and seasons of year pose different challenges.
Also we're reminded that there are people and organizations who care: those individuals and businesses who made a conscious choice not to take the easy way out and shrug this issue off as someone else's problem.
Given the freezing, biting and otherwise miserable weather that swooped down on us late last week, which tumbled the mercury down significantly to well below the freezing mark (before factoring the added windchill) it's great timing.