Street Patrol helps Carleton youth reach out to homeless
By Seon Park, Youth Speak News
OTTAWA - The small chaplaincy office at Carleton University is filled with the smell of salami, ham, chicken, cheese and freshly baked bread. The university is quiet on a Saturday morning except for a lively group of Catholic students making sandwiches. When they’re finished, they pack juice boxes, granola bars and bags of socks and set out for Street Patrol.Held on Oct. 23, Street Patrol is a ministry derived from St. Patrick’s Church in Toronto and was brought to Carleton by a former student named Michael Manulak. It involves a group of four to five people reaching out to homeless on the street, speaking with them and offering food, snacks and drinks.
In doing so, Carleton students get a step closer to following Jesus’ teaching of feeding the hungry and offering drinks to the thirsty.
Erik Sorenson, president of the Carleton University Roman Catholic Community, found Street Patrol a powerful experience.
“Participants get to see first hand the poverty that exists in our city, in every city,” said the fourth-year aerospace engineering student. “The students often comment about how they never noticed these people before when they had come to the area to shop.”
University chaplain Fr. David Shulist said Street Patrol is an important outreach initiative.
“It keeps me aware of a fringe group of people who make up the city and belong despite how the general population may think otherwise,” said Shulist. “They are often people we ignore, fear or want to have go away.”
Marie Bernier, a third-year psychology student, said she always feels fantastic after taking part in Street Patrol.
“I feel like I’ve done something really positive and very practical in helping those who need it,” she said. “I’m very lucky to never starve and have great family and friends, and I really want to give back to those who are less fortunate than myself.”
Although the number of participants was low, Sorenson said it’s not the number of students that matter but the experience they have.
“If one person gets their eyes opened to the poverty in our city or experiences Christ in a homeless person then our mission has been accomplished. This program is much more than just the number of sandwiches we hand out. It is about being able to serve our neighbours by showing that we care.”
Sorenson said he encountered a man on street with a university degree.
“It shocked me to think that I myself could end up like him. It made me realize that no one is immune to poverty.”
And Shulist said that Street Patrol shows students that God loves both the homeless and those who reject them.
“A spirituality of walking one’s city becomes more than walking but learning how to see through God’s eyes. It is seeing the goodness in the midst of the brokenness, sinfulness and evil.”
While Street Patrol is set to take place twice this semester, Bernier said it should be done more often.
Sorenson agrees there is room for improvement.
“Presently, we only have the resources to conduct two patrols per semester. But, with a little fundraising, we could easily be on the streets once a month or even more frequently.”
(Park, 19, is a communications and political science student at Carleton University in Ottawa.)
Please support The Catholic Register
Unlike many media companies, The Catholic Register has never charged readers for access to the news and information on our website. We want to keep our award-winning journalism as widely available as possible. But we need your help.
For more than 125 years, The Register has been a trusted source of faith-based journalism. By making even a small donation you help ensure our future as an important voice in the Catholic Church. If you support the mission of Catholic journalism, please donate today. Thank you.
DONATE