Christopher McComber was homeless in Montreal for several months. Just long enough to fully enjoy the apartment he moved into in the Rosemont area in October.
Posted at 5:00 am
“After the time I spent on the streets, every morning when I get up I tell myself that I am lucky,” says this tall 21-year-old man, who met this week at the premises of the Dans la rue organization , where it works now. a job.
It is thanks to the organization's stakeholders that Christopher has managed to take responsibility for himself and that he now has a concrete project: to complete training as a steelworker from March next year.
But a year ago the young man was surrounded by uncertainty.
It all started with tendonitis that prevented him from keeping his job in Drummondville sanding pieces of wood. Instead of seeing a doctor to receive benefits, he simply stopped working. Without money, he could no longer pay the rent for his shared room.
Hiking in Montreal
He arrived in Montreal in January without knowing anyone and without a place to stay. When police saw him sitting alone on a park bench, they sent him to a shelter for homeless youth. He then began attending the Dans la rue day center, which everyone refers to as “chez Pops,” named after its late founder, Father Emmett Johns, known as Pops.
“Everyone knows Pops has the best food. When we arrive here, we always take a few books with us,” says Christopher.
“Our philosophy is unconditional welcome,” explains Mirlande Myrand, deputy head of interventions at Dans la rue. “At the beginning the young people come to eat and so the workers have their first contact with them. »
Young people can then participate in activities and undertake employability or relocation procedures at their own pace. Just like Christopher did.
“The workers are super efficient, they give you a list of things that need to be done,” he says.
PHOTO MARTIN TREMBLAY, THE PRESS
Christopher McComber works at the organization Dans la rue.
If you don't know this, all official procedures, for example to obtain a health insurance card or social assistance, seem extremely complicated. You need someone to have your back and help you.
Christopher McComber
The young man just needed a push to get back on his feet.
In March he started working at Dans la rue. He sorts donations of clothing and hygiene products and prepares hot dogs, which are distributed in the neighborhood on the organization's bus, among other things.
Difficult shopping
Last fall, he was accepted into the Housing Support Program (PSL), which allows a tenant to pay just 25% of their income in rent, with the rest covered by the state. He started looking for an apartment and tried to convince the owners to take part in the program.
I visited 30 or 40 shelters and none accepted me. Since they have a choice, they choose someone with a better profile.
Christopher McComber
“There’s not much we can do to get people off the streets if there’s no housing,” adds Isabelle Rochon-Goyer, liaison and support worker. “For young social assistance recipients, some of whom suffer from severe employment restrictions, the benefit does not even cover the basic costs of rent. »
PHOTO MARTIN TREMBLAY, THE PRESS
Isabelle Rochon-Goyer, Liaison and Support Officer
In Christopher's case, it was ultimately the Office Municipal d'habitation de Montréal (OMHM) that found him an apartment. Thanks to the PSL, he is also entitled to a subsidy for the purchase of furniture.
“We like to think that we are like a safety net for young people so that they don't get stuck in homelessness,” concludes Mirlande Myrand.