Covenant House’s 12th Sleep Out highlights challenge of experiencing homelessness

Covenant House Vancouver had its 12th annual Sleep Out on Thursday that aims to spread awareness and raise money for youth who are experiencing homelessness or at risk of homelessness.

The CEO of Covenant House Vancouver, Deb Lester, and 45 other sleepers spent the night on the streets of Vancouver.

She tells CityNews that emotions were quite high amongst the new and veteran sleepers.

“If I was not the CEO of Covenant House … I would be coming back to do this because the emotion was that strong.”

She adds participants had a lot of reflections, and the topics of safety and weather were big issues that came up.

“We had a choice to be here to do this last night but the youth in our community don’t have a choice,” she said. “Or, the choice that they have is sleeping out on the street compared to other places … and that is very stark when you think about the conditions outside.”

The money that Sleep Out raised will go towards its “Crisis Program” which allows youth access to all different kinds of services the organization provides, such as mental health support.

She also adds, that the intention of the Sleep Out is not to mimic homelessness, but instead, to raise awareness about what people are experiencing, specifically amongst so many youth in Vancouver.

“We obviously had the luxury of preparing and having winter clothes on … and even with that, lying on the concrete, the concrete just pulls the heat out of your body,” Lester explained.

According to Covenant House Vancouver’s website, 20 per cent of Canada’s homeless population consists of young people between the ages of 13 and 24.

Going forward, the organization aims to use this experience to shape future decisions and programs.

“We always re-evaluate what else needs to be offered so we can meet youth on their journey to independence.. so where do we go from here is to offer the very best,” Lester says.