Surviving Edmonton: 1 year spent with homeless people seeking stable housing

For more than a year, Global News tracked the lives of four homeless people in Edmonton.

Global News Investigates: Surviving Edmonton offers a deeply personal look into a journey few people can understand.

Kimberley Robertson, Troy Cardinal, Leanne Wuttunee and Adam Krause welcomed the Global News team into deeply personal moments in their lives throughout the year.

The team spent time inside drop-in shelters, encampments during extreme cold warnings and inside supportive housing facilities, providing a first-hand and raw account into what it means to live on Edmonton’s streets.

Global News Investigates: Surviving Edmonton is an exploration into the day-to-day struggles of Edmonton’s most vulnerable. It is also a display of how survival can get in the way of the journey from being homeless to housed.

#GlobalNews #edmonton #homeless

[Taco]

I actually recognize Kimberly, I used to work at Lucky 97 Supermarket and I'd see her come in every so often. She wouldn't buy anything major, just a bag of candy. Now that I know her and her story, I can say that if I see her, I'm buying her something warm and telling her that this stranger is thankful she's around and thriving despite being unhoused.

[sergebrunet]

I m french from the Montreal area been trucking for 35 years and 10 of those years were from Edmonton, AB. on a normal winter many days are -30c and colder ! i can t imagine being outside for more than 15 min.! rent is so expensive you need to have a really good pay to afford it ! I couldn t even afford it as a trucker. i had to pay my chevy silverado 600 $ a month, 170$ for my storage room were all my belongings are, still paying that to this day ! ya !so i was living in motels on my days off. The rest of the time i was staying in the truck ! God bless those homeless ! one day at a time struggling the elements !

[kdvine]

2 years ago I was homeless for 11 months. The summertime was the most freedom I have ever experienced.. and I will always treasure the mindfulness that homelessness taught me. I can relate to every one of these stories. The struggle of loneliness, navigating the system to get into housing, the stigmatization and living day to day. I was fortunate enough to get into my own apartment, and get my daughter back into my custody. I hope that one day we are able to get everyone into safe affordable housing.

[Trenchofstolenhearts]

I almost died when I was pregnant, I was sleeping under a bridge just a few roads over from Whyte Avenue. A peace officer woke me up, if he hadn't I don't think me and my 4 year old son would be here today . I was homeless on and off in Edmonton since I was about 14 . It's really hard to get off the streets . Really hard.

[cbjorn]

I wish Kimberly, Leanne, Troy and Adam the very best, and I hope they can find housing, peace and joy❤

[diannerose]

Australia is in a rental crisis, I've been homeless for a year, I've not been on the street luckily but I know what real survival mode is, and how life becomes so small

[dawnamae]

$2000 for a 1 bedroom just reported on the news in Edmonton right now!

[mathieu]

As a Canadian, I feel really sad for our country so called a rich country ! Our governement and society let down those citizens homeless

[katherinekuefler-kappel]

God bless the couple that is carrying around Noloxone and trying to help those that need it. They are such a beautiful example of giving of yourself even when you have very little to give.

[Dmart]

I'm a red seal journeyman working and I used to have some disposable income to help with my mental health, to enjoy a hockey game with my son, go bowling or eat somewhere... Those days are long gone and the gross expenditures of the federal government and insane taxes have me barely making it paycheck to paycheck.. and work is now drying up as lower paid new Canadians "sub contractors" are taking all the work ... Politicians use the struggle as a political football

[AlinaMcleod]

I don't understand how a solution for homelessness through government created employment hasn't been considered. Why can't they create an ethical labor industry that anyone who is unhoused can apply for and then receive a basic place to live, food and a bit of spending money as they get on their feet and enter a rehab program if need be? If they don't want to work for their housing (obviously excluding those who medically cannot), then I don't see why there should be enormous tax payer funding towards systems that obviously aren't making that much of a difference to solve the problem.

[amandamccallum]

Max rent for a single person on disability benefits is $500/mth out of the total $1249/mth and OW is less. Then people wonder why we have so many homeless people 😢

[lotstosayalways]

Its hard to make wise choices when all the options are crap

[lisanevins]

The addictions are a problem . No one wants to rent to them .

[natashapetkau]

I lived on the streets of Edmonton during the winter months and I thought many times that I wasn’t going to wake up. -48 with the windchill so damn cold and I was 3 months pregnant to boot.! Never ever want to be in that place again!

[helpanimals-]

Finland solved this. Housing first! then they can deal with the issues through social workers. Tiny homes aren't expensive. Make a village. They just need a small space. Unfortunately, homelessness is a business. Lots of people gain from it

[JakobHill]

Anyone who abuses drugs or alcohol to the point that it prevents them from finding work should not expect society's help until they have committed to trying to get clean.

[bugsquashed]

I have spoken with many seniors living in affordable housing (apartments) that the city has turned into affordable housing for homeless: it’s a nightmare for them. The drug use, prostitution, it’s extremely dangerous, it gets dirty and out of control quickly…. It causes properties to lose value, which is a huge blow to anyone to owns a unit. I have empathy for these people, my own brother was extremely close to this life… I will say, there’s no solution for them until the drug use is addressed. You can’t have a happy, fruitful life slamming dope or high on meth. It wasn’t until my brother quit using, got help, and cleaned up and got a job that he began really living: now he has a common law wife and a child, he’s happier and more importantly clean.
Edmonton has a drug problem: period.

[elissalabellelabelle]

😢I lived in Edmonton for 7 years. 2003-2009. 20 years ago you could rent a nice 2 bedroom apartment for 800-1000

[srealone]

This is officially a world where I can work. Not have a substance abuse addiction at all. And my family and I? Are now on the verge of homelessness.. and people still have the audacity to be commenting here as if it’s only heads that end up here and it’s all their fault. Based on their poor life choices.. people really have no idea that it’s even people who work, make all the best choices they can and don’t have substance abuse problems. We are literally on the verge of ending up in the same position. And no. The help and resources aren’t there, they are maxed out! And over whelmed. You guys are really not getting it.. they need to talk to more people like me. Only? My family will just be attacked and bullied for speaking out and telling the truth. That’s crazy!