Lethbridge Soup Kitchen reacts to shelter management transfer

The Lethbridge Shelter is officially under new management. Operations were transferred over to the Blood Tribe Department of Health on Monday. Bill Ginther from the neighboring Lethbridge Soup Kitchen believes this was a good move.   

“Most of our guests and their clients are indigenous. So this makes sense. You have indigenous people working with indigenous people. Not to say that we should focus on that, because that’s wrong as well, but I think they will have their hands very full. The downside is that Alpha House, who did the operation of the shelter for the last three years, did everything they could to make them unsuccessful. They left an empty building. They didn’t allow them in the building. They stripped the building and so that’s the hard part. I’m very optimistic. I’m cautiously optimistic,” said Bill Ginther, Executive Director, Lethbridge Soup Kitchen.

Communications and Fund Development Manager with Alpha House Shaundra Bruvall says the transition on Jan. 2 went smoothly.

“The Blood Tribe Department of Health [BTDH] arrived earlier than expected while we were finishing a deep clean of the facilities, but we were able to accommodate and remove the remainder of our equipment from the building as the BTDH was bringing in their own. Running a shelter is difficult, valuable work and we wish their staff all the best.”

“We consider it a privilege to have been able to meet, learn from, and, most importantly, provide client care for such resilient individuals. The path to improving the circumstances of those experiencing homelessness can be a difficult one but it is incredibly important, valuable work and we wish the new service provider, the Blood Tribe Department of Health, every success as they step into their new role. ,” added Bruvall.