Aging in Place, photo essay 2022
While the world watched in horror the effects of Covid on the elderly in our long term care homes, what was happening to the seniors who didn't have a home?
There are up to 9000 people who are experiencing homelessness every day in the city of Toronto. About 15% of people in the shelter system are over 60 years old. That's 1350 seniors that we know about. That doesn't include the hundreds of other seniors living below the poverty line or in precarious housing situations.
This photo essay depicts the story of one of the people I met who ended up in the shelter where I work.
Kathy (not her real name) is a 76 year old woman who uses a walker and found herself in a dormitory style open space shelter. Kathy has hearing loss and was visually impaired due to cataracts.
Someone found Kathy crying alone on the street with 4 bags of her stuff. Kathy was in an abusive relationship with her daughter who took her pension money regularly to support her addictions.
We had secured a space in a Seniors Only Shelter after weeks of searching for housing. This space looked like a palace compared to the others. She had a private room with a semi-private shared washroom and all her meals. Although the shelter system is meant for temporary reasons it was obvious this might be Kathy's last home.
Leaving her there with her only few possessions in a stark room with one locker/cabinet was not what I would call a 'success story.'
These photos are meant to shed light on our aging homeless population.
