Region of Waterloo workers donating $2500 to A Better Tent City

WATERLOO, ON —/COMMUNITYWIRE/— Members of CUPE 1883 are hoping to bring a bit of light to homeless people in Waterloo Region this holiday season with a $2500 donation to A Better Tent City.

“This year we chose A Better Tent City because they have been trying to find a permanent location within the Region of Waterloo, because a number of our members work with this population, and because of the horrible treatment some homeless received when they bulldozed their tents and encampment down in Kitchener,” says Noelle Fletcher, president of CUPE 1883, which represents more than 900 Region of Waterloo employees.

The gift cards will be distributed among the 50 encampment residents.

“We were disappointed with how the Region of Waterloo responded to this issue,” says Fletcher. “Like many other municipalities, the Region of Waterloo has a housing crisis. Instead of bulldozing encampments, we need a real strategy of investment in truly affordable, accessible and permanent housing, and the public services that support people so they can remain housed.”

CUPE 1883 represents approximately 900 workers in public health, childcare, social services, finance, IT, housing, administration, museums, libraries, by-law enforcement, engineering, airport, landfill and transportation.

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For more information, please contact:

Craig Saunders, CUPE Communications, 416-576-7316, csaunders@cupe.ca