Why not use Vernon’s DND lands and buildings as a camp for the homeless?
It could become the 20th-century solution to help better their lives.
There’s plenty of room for gardens and composting, fresh air and exercise and training. It could be staffed by helpful, hopeful volunteers and supplied with donated and gleaned healthy food, reusable clothes, furniture and supplies.
The Upper Room Mission, Salvation Army, etc. could have headquarters and services there.
DND could then stand for Development and Nutritional Dependance centre.
The “dependants” could improve their lives by taking a short, healthy walk to the college for training or upgrading, work at the Forestry Research Farm, help with the Summer Cadet program or pull invasive weeds at the Allan Brooks Nature Centre. These are just some possibilities.
The new “R’s rule” — Rethink, refuse, reduce, reuse, repair, refurbish, repurpose and recycle could become the centre’s mantra.
Downtown Vernon could then return to the pleasant and safe commercial and services centre it wants to be.
Cheers!
Roseanne Van Ee,
Vernon
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