St Francis Place

Rene Gauthier had a vision: a shelter for the homeless in Selkirk. As chair of Our Daily Bread Soup Kitchen Inc., he never forgot the people who were, as he puts it, “cold” and “freezing”. He tried turning the sod, but he ran into opposition. Selkirk city council, as well as citizens’ groups, kept blocking his efforts. But he didn’t give up. Now, Gauthier’s vision has sprung to life. St. Francis Place Homeless Shelter opened its doors on Nov. 16. “If we save one person out there, it’s worth it,” Gauthier said. “Hopefully there’s not that many people out there. That’s the prime thing. We’ve haven’t had any people this week. I think it takes just one or two to come in and spread the word to their fellow people out there.”