Winnipeg Urban Plunge

Sitting right near the border where Winnipeg’s North End begins is an old industrial building, converted into a church called The Vineyard. And for four days, from Sept. 27 to Sept. 30, The Vineyard opened its doors to Site 2 for our Winnipeg Urban Plunge. We were there for a church service on the 27th, where a huge variety of people from all walks of life came together in the same space. I was particularly touched that while the worship band played, children were allowed to dance beside the stage with streamers. It was a moving expression of joyful worship in a place that desperately needs joy.
On our first day of the actual plunge we spent hours walking around the North End and downtown Winnipeg in small groups on a scavenger hunt. Armed with a map and a bag full of chronological instructions we met with and heard from a variety of inner-city workers on topics ranging from gangs to the history of the North End. Along the way we got to get first-hand a feel for the area. For my group, our day was heavily impacted when we met a homeless woman named Arlene. Over a sandwich and a coffee she regaled us with ridiculous jokes and, when those ran out, told us the moving and fragmented story of her life. We didn’t really know how to respond to a woman telling us about the death of her father and the incredible physical, mental and sexual abuse she suffered as a child. We were left wondering just how to process what we heard.

Another moving (and difficult, for some) experience was our visit to Siloam mission. We were given an overview of the incredible work that Siloam does in the North End, taken downstairs for a tour of the storage rooms… and told to give up our shirts. From the selection of shirts that the people who come to Siloam get to choose from, we traded whatever we were wearing for anything that looked even moderately appealing. The feeling of giving up something that we liked and that was ours for something less appealing was frustrating, but exciting at the same time. It helped me to identify with people for whom personal property is negligible, and having a shirt, any shirt on their back is important.

The next two days we were split into larger groups and loosed on different outreach and community service opportunities. Some of us worked in soup kitchens, some with children. Some of us worked at food banks and some were left to their own devices (they ended up handing out gift cards for food and coffee). Our experiences weren’t limited to service; a pair of groups had an artistic experience at the Graffiti gallery while learning about the programs there. Another couple of groups (mine included) spent a day at the law courts with an incredible man named Harvey. He showed us just how ridiculous our legal system is, particularly for people who don’t necessarily have the means to sit in a room for hours just to find out that their court date has been remanded, or to drive to the courthouse every couple of weeks to hear the same thing.

Having lived in Winnipeg almost my whole life and participating in urban plunges there, I was pretty prepared for what to expect this week. But seeing again firsthand things that happen in my own city, a fifteen minute drive from my house was very powerful. And it begged the question, what am I doing to make a difference? There are some amazing people working for change in the North End. And I think the rest of the city needs to know about it.

-Brock P.

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