Tucassie Arlooktoo lives in the brush just below Jasper Avenue.
It’s unlikely that drivers in cars rushing by would catch even a glimpse of her tent, barely visible under a white tarp.
“It’s hard sometimes,” Arlooktoo said, tears in her eyes. “The first time the cold came, we couldn’t bear it.”
She pointed to a portable heater in the tent she shares with her boyfriend. “But these propane tanks, they keep us warm at night.”
Arlooktoo, 33, is originally from Baffin Island, Nunavut. She said things haven’t worked out the way she had hoped when she first arrived in Edmonton a year ago.
Her camp in the river valley is a short hike from the city’s downtown. She knows she could stay in a shelter, but prefers to bundle up with warm clothes and blankets in a hideaway where nobody bothers her.
‘You don’t like to see anyone in these places.’ – Doug Cooke, street outreach worker
To survive winter weather, she relies on donations brought by street outreach workers.
“It’s certainly a sad situation, you don’t like to see anyone in these places,” said Doug Cooke, one of seven outreach workers with the Boyle Street Community Services team.
It’s their job to find people who are camping, then try to get them in touch with housing supports that can help them get off the street.
Cooke hands Arlooktoo a new pair of recently donated mitts, as well as granola bars, bottled water and Girl Guide cookies.
“We’re doing what we can to get them on their way, and hope we can assist them to find housing or get them connected to services,” Cooke said.
Many people sleep outside, he said, even as temperatures have approached the -30 C in the past few days.
To avoid shelters, Tucassie Arlooktoo sleeps outside in a tent where no one can bother her. (Peter Evans CBC News)
Cooke finds people in makeshift camps in all parts of Edmonton, including the outerskirts of the city.
He estimates there could still be hundreds living outside, even during the recent cold spell.
“I’m not happy that they’re here but I’m happy that I can at least offer them something that will hopefully make their day go a little bit smoother,” he said.
In Arlooktoo’s case, Cooke helped get her on a waiting list for social housing.
She has now been accepted into a program with Homeward Trust. While it could take a few weeks for her to find a place, she feels this could be the breakthrough she needs.
“We’ll be out of here soon,” said Arlooktoo, whose boyfriend recently found a welding job.
She said she is grateful for the help of the outreach team. “They’ve been nothing but awesome to me.”
Today is the last day of CBC Edmonton’s clothing drive for the homeless.
CBC is collecting new hats, gloves and socks. Donations can be dropped off between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. at CBC’s office on the main floor of City Centre Mall.
The clothing drive ends Tuesday night. Donated supplies will be shared with the agencies that work with Edmonton’s homeless.