The St.Alban Drop-in Centre celebrated its second anniversary Thursday in conjunction with the church's Homeless Connect day, whereby the city's homeless were offered various services and handouts.
Scott Newcombe received a free haircut from local hairstylist Ted Hunter, who donates one day each month to the centre.
St.Alban's warden, Dianne Woodhouse, said the centre amalgamates services available for homeless to make connections. As rainy season approaches, she said waterproof clothing is a welcome donation.
Many homeless people were able to take clothing they needed from some of the clothing racks volunteers had organized.
Nurses were on hand giving out free flu vaccinations and some non-perishable food was handed out as well.
Various local community service groups provided information about their services, as well.
The drop-in centre is the only one of its kind in Richmond and has gained momentum in the homeless community, said Woodhouse.
"Because of the outreach being done at the drop-in centre, people are seeing familiar faces. so when we tell them about this they trust us to come. Same with the police. They see the police a lot more than they used to on bike patrols and the police are telling them to come here," she said.
Woodhouse said Richmond's homeless population is hidden but the centre is bringing more awareness to those in need of permanent shelter.
One of the problems Woodhouse sees is a holistic approach to the problem in the city. This results in many homeless people having to leave the city to seek help and shelter.
"What is unique about Richmond is the homeless here want to stay in Richmond. They come in looking for shelter and the only thing we can get them is an SRO (single-room occupancy unit) in downtown (Vancouver), but they do not want to go. They do not want any part of the drug scene downtown," said Woodhouse.
