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Vancity is one of the sponsors of Richmond’s 2022 Coldest Night of the Year event, hosted again by Chimo Community Services.

Photo courtesy Chimo Community Services

Coldest Night walk again gathering people virtually

By Hannah Scott, Local Journalism Initiative reporter

Published 12:46 PST, Fri February 25, 2022

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Help those in need by donating to or participating in this year’s Coldest Night of the Year event.

The national initiative invites people to walk two to five kilometres in winter weather, gaining compassion and empathy while raising money for those experiencing homelessness. The Richmond event is hosted annually by Chimo Community Services.

Chimo executive director Tabitha Geraghty says the organization uses funds to fill in gaps that government funding doesn’t cover.

“As a non-profit, that’s where our fundraising dollars go—to pivot and meet the needs of the community,” she adds.

Chimo offers a transition house for women and children fleeing domestic violence, second stage housing for single women who have experienced abuse, a homelessness prevention program, and a homelessness outreach program. People in need are also connected to other aid programs like counselling, seniors’ services, settlement services for newcomers, or crisis lines.

“All these services really wrap around a client and support them to get them back on their feet and move them from crisis to well-being,” says Geraghty.

Local Coldest Night of the Year sponsors include Vancity, Turning Point Recovery Society, Steveston Seafood House, O’Hares GastroPub, Gilmore Park United Church, Richmond Family Place, and Steveston Smiles, among others. This year’s event is again being run virtually due to provincial health restrictions, a format Geraghty says is challenging.

“It’s difficult to inspire people and to share the messaging and information of the work Chimo does without being able to gather,” she says. “There’s a palpable energy of walking together for the same cause.”

But she’s grateful for the support of locals who have continued to show up year after year, despite the changed format.

“Even though we’re not all together, we’re together in the spirit of the event,” says Geraghty.

People can still sign up and do some walking by connecting with an existing group or starting their own team. Donations are also accepted online for another 30 days following the official conclusion of the walk tomorrow (Feb. 26).

“We’ve seen through the pandemic there’s more need for mental health supports, for counselling services and workshops, for housing,” says Geraghty. “Everybody feels the housing crunch right now, and people who don’t have money and were already living in poverty feel it even more. We don’t see that coming out of the lockdown is going to lift any of those stresses off this target population.”

Chimo’s goal amount is $50,000 to commemorate its upcoming 50th anniversary. So far, $23,575 has been raised. Geraghty says the Chimo team will be happy with whatever amount is raised, as every dollar goes back to support the community.

To learn more or donate, click here.