Downtown Mission head spends night outside to battle homelessness

By Xin Zhang

The executive director of Windsor’s Downtown Mission spent 24-hours outside in the cold on a bench in the bid combat homelessness.

Ron Dunn raised $3,000 in donations while sitting outside the Wellness Centre at 875 Ouellette Ave. People sat beside him to show support and they discussed issues related to homelessness like addiction, poverty and the lack of affordable housing.

In Windsor, more than 5,000 people are on a waiting list for housing.

“Our biggest challenge as a community is to find affordable housing, it’s becoming bad for the people in Windsor,” said Dunn.

A registry that keeps track of the homeless in Windsor has reached about 500 individuals and families, more than the number of available affordable housing units, according to Family Services of Windsor.

If you would like to donate or be a volunteer at the Downtown Mission, go to downtownmission.com or call (519) 973-5573.