Surrey Update #2: On streets, in services and local businesses

Dec 14

The past four days we’ve been meeting people, shadowing staff and services, and talking to small business owners in the community in Surrey. We’ve been in and out of shelters, food lines, a safe injection site, McDonalds, and Ted Kuhn towers. We do this to understand the every day realities of people using services, those who don’t and the social service personnel providing supports. From that experience we want to learn what’s working, in order to develop new systems, services and supports that don’t just help people to survive, but enable to thrive.

By Muryani Kasdani

December 14, 2017

Photo story

Click on the photos to see and read what we did each day.

0011 — 10:30am Monday: Introducing ourselves to the staff team at Ted Kuhn and what we’ll be doing in the next 2 weeks.

0021 — 11:30am Monday: Learning from the staff team about places to go and people to meet.

003 — 3:00pm Monday: Talking to small business owners about folks that frequent their businesses.

004 — 4pm Monday: Visiting 135A street to get a sense of the strip.

005 — 5pm Monday: Visiting the library and talking to the staff to see what’s on offer. We interviewed the program director a few days later.

006 — 9am Tuesday: Making and testing some recruitment flyers and offers.

007 — 10am Tuesday: Shadowing a housing staff person at work.

008 — 12pm Tuesday: Shadowing volunteers and people at Surrey Urban Mission food kitchen.

009 — 3pm Tuesday: Shadowing Shannon as she interacts with a resident.

010 — 5pm Tuesday: Hanging out in front of Ted Kuhn towers to recruit residents.

011 — 7pm Tuesday: Meeting more folks at Nightshift evening meals.

012 — 8pm Tuesday: Interviewing Tricia at McDonald’s.

013 — 8:00am Wednesday: Joining a breakfast program to meet and talk to more folks not using services.

014 — 11am Wednesday: Shadowing a meeting between the police and social service agencies.

015 — 12.30pm Wednesday: Visiting SafePoint injection site to talk to staff and get statistics and numbers of people using the service.

016 — 1pm Wednesday: Interviewing a woman about her experience living in shelters, and what services were attractive for her and what not.

017 — 7pm Wednesday: Visiting Safe Haven on 135A street to hear stories of people and what’s being measured.

018 — 9am Thursday: Interviewing Samantha, a young mother who recently became homeless.

019 — 2pm Thursday: Interviewing a contentious resident in Ted Kuhn about his challenges and aspiration.

We've met people in 15 places

Surrey Update2

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Muryani Kasdani

Muryani contributes to InWithForward as a design researcher, helping to conduct …

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