A network of local social service agencies will host Project Reconnect, a one-day, one-stop annual service fair that provides local community members experiencing homelessness and poverty with access to free services, resources, and referrals.
Project Reconnect will take place on Wednesday, Oct.9, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Central Baptist Church (833 Pandora Ave.).
The project’s organizer, the Downtown Service Providers (DSP) Committee, is holding this year’s event in the fall, checking in with community members to ensure their practical needs are met before Victoria’s winter months arrive.
“Project Reconnect is an easy-going, hassle-free environment where service providers and people with lived experience can share information and connect – or reconnect,” said Michael Lane, a member of the DSP. “It’s a great opportunity for us to meet face-to-face with folks and ensure they have major things, like access to income tax information, as well as little things that make a big difference, like clean socks.”
More than 40 different service providers will be on hand at the event, providing free services like medical care, ID replacement, haircuts, foot care, Narcan training, a hearing clinic, veterinary help, a chair massage, and more.
In bringing together so many service providers in one space, organizers hope that attendees will have the opportunity to find out who can help, no matter the situation they’re in.
With an expected attendance of 400 people, the event will provide a hot meal along with a grab bag for each participant.
This year, a number of local businesses, organizations, and charities have supported the event by donating items such as new socks, personal hygiene items, and outdoor wear.
The first iteration of Project Reconnect took place in Victoria in 2008. The event is now supported by United Way Southern Vancouver Island and the City of Victoria.
To support Project Reconnect, contact michael.lane@akgcanada.ca.
