Harvest House opens door when others have closed
Times & Transcript - New Brunswick

For the past 13 years, Cal Maskery, founder and executive director of Harvest House, along with the board of directors and staff, have been breathing new life into people who considered themselves hopeless, people with homelessness issues and addictions that prevent them from seeking a better way of life.

Where do you go when you finally realize you have hit bottom and simply don't have the energy to go on?

Well, for some of those people, Harvest House - located on High Street in Moncton near Saint George Street - is an organization that answers the call, or that knock on the door, as the case may be, when called upon. An entry on their website, harvesthouseministries.org, explains best the service it provides:

"Harvest House staff and volunteers have opened its doors to anyone coming in and looking for help. We opened initially as a community drop-in centre and right from the beginning people began coming in looking for help and guidance. Many had very little or no family support. Many had burned their bridges. Many arrived desperate, some looking for food, some needing shelter, some just needed friends and a supportive community."

As with any urban centre, Metro Moncton continues to see an influx of folks who know they need help but aren't sure where to get it and discover that Harvest House might be what they are looking for.

So as the need grows, so does the need for space and Cal Maskery recently announced that expansion plans for the current facilities are moving forward. In our recent discussion, he said, "We will be building a second floor on the existing shelter that will accommodate 32 beds, 24 of them will be designated for men and 8 for women." He also stated the plans allow for more office space. "Half of the upstairs will be a permanent shelter with permanent beds. The other half will be for administration, things like case management, future planning and counselling. Right now our offices are down the street at a separate location so having an office on-site will make a huge difference."

This latest move indicates that Harvest House is looking to the future in anticipating that the need for its services will grow right along with the region.

Maskery points out, "We never planned on being a shelter. With the homelessness situation growing we get about 15 or 20 people a night and they sleep on floor mats in the outreach centre. Our goal (in this area) is to reduce homelessness by offering those people who are serious about turning their life around one less thing to worry about while we work with them, that being a safe place to stay."

So with a pressing need to get this project off the ground Maskery reports, "Construction is going to begin on July 26."

He also speaks fondly about the outpouring of support from the community in various ways. "We have trades people who have already come forward and said they would donate some of their time and skill in carpentry and electrical. We just need to line up a plumber." Anybody who wishes to drop by and see if they would like to be part of the team is welcomed to do so by calling 855-0626.

As with any project looking to make a positive impact on the community, there is a price to pay and this is no exception. Maskery remarks, "I am always aware and impressed by the level of support we receive.

"We already have (the expansion) two-thirds paid for.

New Brunswick Housing has committed $151,000 in forgivable loans and we have raised $100,000 in kind so we need to raise another $150,000."

According to Maskery, the committee brought together to come up with a way to secure that amount suggests, "If people wanted to purchase one square foot of development it would work out to $100. Our goal is to find 1,500 people who will do that. And any business that contributes will receive recognition on the shelter wall as well as the website that will be monitoring the campaign's progress," for all to see. Success stories are also posted.

Maskery enthusiastically concludes by saying, "Harvest House is about the community coming together to help people rebuild their lives and adjust to the community with support from the community. Now with a growing number of community partners, it's making a huge difference and both are being rewarded."

* Terry Parker's column appears daily. Terry can be heard weekdays hosting the Morning Show on CKO 107.3FM from 7-10 a.m. Want to contribute to Terry Parker's People with your questions and comments? Contact Terry at 859-2356 or terryp62@gmail.com

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