Chez Doris to reopen weekend shelter in Montreal

Chez Doris will reopen their day shelter on weekends, starting June 15, after being closed for the past 10 months.

The organization supports vulnerable and homeless women, and the shelter is located on Chomedey Street in downtown Montreal.

Julia Blanco is one of the women Chez Doris helps. She was robbed while in Spain, went through financial issues, a house fire and then was left homeless when she got back to Canada.

“I had to stay there for a while and I went homeless because they stole my wallet. I had my frozen account here in Canada and then I went a month and a half. I had a fire and after that, we were in the street, a few people and I. I used to call my friends asking for money, but then they stole my phone and I could not call back again here so I was without money” remembered Blanco.

According to a press release, with the housing crisis reaching critical numbers, the amount of people in vulnerable housing situations has grown rapidly.

“Shelters throughout the province are at full capacity, highlighting the precarity of the situation,” reads the press release. “The weekend reopening of the Chez Doris day shelter not only reaffirms the commitment to their clientele, but it also underscores their determination to continue offering these essentials services as quickly as possible, to meet the ever-growing need.”

Diane Pilote, Chez Doris Executive Director, said that the relaunch of weekend services is important because the shelter can help people seven days a week.

“Thanks to the addition of these weekend slots, we’ll be able to ensure the continuity of support we already offer across our five sites: our day shelter, our night shelter and our community centre, which offer health and social services; and our two residences,” said Pilote.

“On the weekend, we don’t have to take our backpacks, so I feel more free like a fly. I could fly so I would just be sitting in malls, be sitting in places that I used to have before I came back to Spain,” said Blanco.

During their hiatus from weekends, Chez Doris recruited and trained several new support staff members, who will be working at the day shelter.

“We remain dedicated to our mission of ensuring the well-being of vulnerable women whose situation has deteriorated significantly as a result of both the local housing crisis and the rise of homelessness across Montreal,” added Pilote.

“[The shelter users] were really happy. Just like in the morning, there’s one we didn’t know she said she had a car, but she was sleeping in her car during the weekend so she was really really happy. Another one has a dog, so she was really happy too to have a place, because we will be open during the day on the weekend and she used to go to the dorm and we accept dogs. She’s really happy that she can rest,” said Clémentine, team leader for Chez Doris.

Last year, 974 women sought refuge at Chez Doris, accounting for over 14,000 visits to their day shelter. With the introduction of weekends –starting Saturday June 15th, Chez Doris can now provide continuous support across their five sites, offering health and clothing services, social activities, showers, and meals.