In this Issue:
- Cold Weather Outreach in Courtenay Offers Warmth during the Winter Months
- Profile: New Staff at AVI
- AVI Educators on What They Love Most About Their Jobs
- New Rosters of Board Members Announced
- World AIDS Day Events
Cold Weather Outreach in Courtenay Offers Warmth during the Winter Months
By: Sarah Sullivan
Manager, AVI Courtenay and Campbell River
As the sun goes down over the Coastal Mountains, a green pick-up truck rumbles up the 6th Street alley and parks behind the Courtenay AIDS Vancouver Island (AVI) office. It is Tuesday night and the and the AVI outreach worker and volunteer driver load up the truck with tents, sleeping bags, tarps, harm reduction supplies, coffee and sandwiches before heading out for another night of Cold Weather Outreach.
The Cold Weather Outreach program brings supplies and food to folks living on the streets of the Comox Valley. From the beginning of November to the end of March, the outreach team is out on Tuesday and Thursday evenings, starting at the public library where many folks who are homeless find some shelter from the cold. The team then follows several scheduled stops throughout Courtenay and Comox. The goal is to help someone get through the night and connect to services the next day.