I wished to write in response to a letter of December 27 in which the writer was concerned about the use of her donation to the Manna Homeless Society van.
Firstly, I want to thank her and her friend for their donation of clothing and their concern for the homeless at this time of year. All clothing donations are gratefully accepted and desperately required during this time of cold and rainy weather. Without people like her and her friend, many of these people simply couldn’t survive living outdoors.
Our Manna van which brings the donations of food and clothing for disbursement on Saturday mornings is not large enough to hold all of the food required as well as the bulky winter clothing and we are always appreciative when someone takes the time to drop off winter supplies in person. We now use the van and two or three other vehicles as well to bring the required items on Saturdays. We are fundraising for a larger cube-type van which will allow us to keep the clothing inside the vehicle but at this time, we are far from this goal and there are much greater needs to be met right here and now with respect to food and clothing. Secondly, although her donation appeared to be taken by someone who was not homeless, that may not be the case. The majority of the homeless population in Oceanside live outside of Parksville in wooded areas where they can set up their tents and tarps without causing conflict for townspeople. Some church members have stepped up to assist them with rides to the parking lot on Saturdays to collect what they might need. Although we cannot say for certain that this is what happened on the Saturday she attended, that is often the case on Saturday mornings.
Robin Campbell
President, Manna Homeless Society
Parksville