Lyn Radford was joined by Scott R and Darcy M to share info about the Chamber of Commerce report from the Task Force on Homelessness. 

It was disturbing to learn that the 2022 number of individuals who were identified as experiencing homelessness has more than doubled since 2018.  This indicates that we are not only inadequately supporting those individuals in our community but that there is a tremendous impact on the health and social services resources, crime and safety, and the reputation and economic status of Red Deer.  The task force engaged with the community and stakeholders and summarized the state of homelessness in Red Deer as "well intended , compassionate people working in a patchwork of systems to address a complex set of circumstances".  They shared the difficulties of the 3 levels of government having different priorities and levels of responsibility. The need for  ensuring that all have a safe place to live was identified as a central issue- homelessness is a housing problem! Red Deer has very little transitional or permanent supportive housing and the shelter is not viewed as a permanent solution as many do not feel safe there. The importance of increasing our knowledge and understanding of the issues can not be denied.  Collaboration, integration  and sharing of resources and knowledge by agencies to work toward a common goal is encouraged.  The Task Force encourages all to provide feedback regarding the recommendations at https://www.reddeerchamber.com/homeless-task-force/.   It is a daunting challenge that is faced by all.