MEDIA ADVISORY: Candlelight memorial for those who have died while experiencing homelessness

CALGARY, Alberta, Dec. 21, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- This winter, on Thursday December 21^st in Shaw Millennium Park, Calgary will hold a city-wide memorial service for those who have passed away while experiencing homelessness in our city. Coordinated annually by the Client Action Committee (CAC) at the Calgary Homeless Foundation, this memorial, called the Longest Night of the Year, will give a place for many to remember those they have lost. For most individuals who have passed, this candlelight memorial will be the only commemoration of their lives lost due to homelessness. The Longest Night memorial service is open to every Calgarian.

Media are invited. There will be interview and photo opportunities following the event.

QUOTES:

Randy Pages, Client Action Committee Member
“You know, for many they were just another face on the street, but what people don’t always realize is that they’re somebody’s brother; somebody’s daughter; somebody’s husband - and they all need to be remembered.”

Diana Krecsy, President and CEO, Calgary Homeless Foundation
“The Longest Night of the Year is an important memorial for volunteers on the Client Action Committee, for staff at the Calgary Homeless Foundation, and our partner agencies. Those who have died while homeless and sleeping rough on the streets of Calgary were our fellow citizens and we want to honor their lives by acknowledging their existence and remembering them. Tonight is about sharing our humanity; about honoring the lives of those who mattered to us and sharing our compassion for each other and for those we have lost. They were people and they mattered.”

His Worship Naheed Nenshi, Mayor of Calgary
“As we continue to fight homelessness in our community, we cannot forget those we’ve lost. But, like the winter solstice, we come together in the darkness to be reminded of the light ahead. There is no place for homelessness in our community. Together, we have the resources and the right solutions to make sure every Calgarian has a home.”

About CHF

The Calgary Homeless Foundation is a catalyst and enabler for Systems and Service Agencies to optimize client success. CHF focuses on four strategic pillars of work; Research and Development, Community Mobilization, Funder of Outcomes and Impact, and Public and Political Will. CHF addresses gaps and identifies best practices to improve the system of care. Through mobilization of collective impact, CHF is committed to moving forward in partnership with the many homeless-serving agencies, the private sector, government partners, the faith community, other foundations and all Calgarians to end homelessness in Calgary. For more information, visit calgaryhomeless.com

About the Client Action Committee

The Client Action Committee (CAC) is a volunteer committee of individuals who have experience of, or are currently experiencing, homelessness in Calgary. They are a committed group of Calgarians who consult on a bi-weekly basis with the Calgary Homeless Foundation to provide a lived experience voice and perspective. Not only do they play an advisory role within CHF, they have coordinated multiple events for the community such as the 2015 Mock Election, the annual Longest Night of the Year memorial, have both attended and presented at the 7 Cities Conference of Housing and Homelessness on the benefit of client committees and have consulted on the federal National Housing Strategy.