River City Vineyard
"River City Vineyard is a church and community outreach center in Sarnia, Ontario. The sign on top of the front door of our building reads "Come as you are, you will be loved", and we strive to live this out for every individual that we serve, even throughout every unique and challenging circumstance.
Throughout the week we operate an emergency food bank and snack program, a shower/hygiene program (where individuals can come and take a hot shower and receive any required toiletries and/or feminine hygiene products), a "free" store (where donated clothing and small household items are free for the taking), and a community garden. We also operate our homeless shelter that has 2 wings - our longstanding shelter that houses 28 beds, and our shelter expansion that houses 40 additional beds, including 15 beds specifically for women.
Homelessness is a major issue in Sarnia, and it unfortunately seems to be getting worse instead of better. We want to be part of the solution. This is why we need to keep our doors open and our programs running - so that we can continue to help the most marginalized and vulnerable in our community. We are now a drug free facility; for a guest to be able to stay in our shelter they cannot be actively using drugs. This was a very difficult decision as we have a huge heart for those who are lost in addiction, however we have individuals staying with us who are working on their sobriety and do not want to be tempted to relapse. It also was due to ongoing aggression, violence and property damage which brought huge safety concerns for our guests and our staff. Since we have gone drug free, we are seeing so many positive changes within those staying with us, it truly is amazing! We still provide food and supplies to those who are still using as we still want to help them in any way that we can. But we want to be a facility that encourages positive change, and we are seeing lives changed - it's awesome!
River City Vineyard operates almost solely on a donation/fundraising basis to continue to provide these essential outreach programs in Sarnia, and we are so thankful for the wonderful ongoing community support!"
