The only men’s shelter in Muskoka is at risk of closing and Norm Miller is lending his voice to the cause. The Parry Sound-Muskoka MPP spoke at Queen’s Park today, encouraging the community to think of the Table Men’s Shelter when giving to charity over the holiday season. Miller pointed out the shelter is funded exclusively on donations, and right now the board is facing the decision of it can afford to stay open in 2018. The eight bed shelter opened last December, and Miller says it’s already at risk of closing.
President Heather Berg says they need to raise $275,000 by the end of December in order to stay open, and up until the end of November $31,000 in donations had come in. Berg says it costs around $13,000 every month to run the men’s shelter, which doesn’t include things like the lease, insurance or office costs. She says that only covers food, staffing and programming costs. She notes the Table’s five other services, including the soup kitchen and food bank, should have enough funding to stay open in the new year.
Berg says they have been brainstorming to come up with another solution to keep the men’s shelter open, and one option that has been discussed is having someone live there. She says a qualified man could stay for room and board, to help keep the doors open. Anyone who might be interested can get in touch with Berg at [email protected] or 705 349 3788.
Those interested in donating can do so at the Table Soup website.
You can also check out Miller’s full statement at Queen’s Park below:
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