Volunteer groups gear up for winter

With months of harsh weather approaching, two homelessness support groups in Saskatoon are advocating for compassion and tolerance when it comes to temporary encampments.

SAGE Clan Patrol Saskatoon and 7^th Generation Rising Collective have gathered around 250 signatures in a petition to Saskatoon City Council to allow illegal encampments from November 2025 through March 2026. The petition reads:

‘Our unhoused relatives do not have sufficient resources heading into the coldest part of the year. People are resilient and do their best to protect themselves and each other. Encampments made with this purpose are often destroyed and moved, increasing risk of death due to unsafe and insufficient shelter in cold weather’.

Renée Roy, co-founder of SAGE Clan Patrol, a volunteer patrol group that brings essential supplies and builds relationships with homeless people in Saskatoon, said they are very concerned about the safety of those without a warm place to go.

“Encampments are people’s survival strategy, to have a safe place to go, to be able to protect each other and stay warm,” said Roy.

“We started this petition because it’s been something we’re hearing a lot about – people setting up these mini-communities and getting shot down every chance. Their stuff is getting destroyed, they’re getting evicted. It’s heartbreaking to hear them, to hear the exhaustion, the frustration, the pain of being kicked out again and again.”

SAGE has been patrolling the streets of Saskatoon for two years, giving out warm clothing and gear, hot meals and drinks, as well as tents, sleeping bags, and sleeping pads. Roy said their group has noticed an increase in the amount of people in need.

“We’re seeing a ton of people who are unhoused or unsafely housed,” Roy said. “We’re finding folks that we’re supporting in neighbourhoods that they’ve never been in before. It’s a city-wide problem.”

Currently, Saskatoon has three warm-up centres for individuals: the Saskatoon Tribal Council women’s shelter located in the former bus depot; the Salvation Army men’s shelter in St. Mary’s Parish Hall; and a youth shelter in White Buffalo Youth Lodge.

The three centres are not enough to accommodate the large homeless population, according to Roy.

“I’m very worried every winter. We know we’re going to be hearing about people who are dying, people losing limbs and digits. We know this is a crisis,” said Roy.

Katherine Munroe, member of Keeseekoose First Nation and founder of 7^th Generation Collective, a street-aid team, said there is a lack of empathy among much of law enforcement in Saskatoon.

“The interactions with police are very negative. I’ve never seen a police officer respect a homeless person like they should,” said Munroe.

“I don’t believe they are there to help, but rather to question, interrogate, and make people feel fear. They’re there to protect with wealthy.”

According to Munroe, many of the tents and sleeping bags given out and used for encampments are slashed by the city police and fire departments, preventing any further use. Munroe said she is aware of this happening 10 to 20 times this year.

“They’re doing this because it’s unsightly. Imagine the five most important things in your life – all you have, and it’s just thrown away,” said Munroe.

“I don’t care how long we have to play this game where we buy more tents and sleeping bags, and they throw them out. We’ll keep doing it as long as we’re keeping people alive.”

Munroe’s 7^th Generation Rising Collective has about 12 regular members who work in various capacities to assist vulnerable people. When they started, Munroe purchased 100 tents and quickly distributed them around the city.

They rely on donations for funding their support work, but Munroe, who works full-time as a tradesperson, has personally contributed about $30,000 to the ongoing bills and costs of operating the Collective.

“I don’t believe our relatives and Elders should be facing this weather. They already face so much rejection from society. I just try to make sure they’re taken care of because they deserve respect. It kills me they’re outside.”

In addition to street aid, Munroe and 7^th Generation puts on a weekly meal at the Central Urban Métis Federation Inc (CUMFI) every Sunday. They prepare food for a full day, usually feeding around 200 individuals, who line up for hours to receive a meal. During the meal, Munroe regularly gets an insight to the daily struggling of the city’s most vulnerable citizens.

“After every single meal, I have probably five relatives asking me if I can take them to a shelter,” said Munroe.

“There’s a lady, she’s probably 70, who is sleeping outside. There should be a home for her. My only plan is to go buy her a room every night at the North Inn.”

Both SAGE and 7^th Generation are seeking a variety of donations, including money, gift cards for food, winter clothing and gear, sleeping bags and tents. In addition to those resources, Munroe said Saskatoon as a whole needs more community resources such as harm reduction, education and training, and mental health care.

“So people can actually get out of survival mode and into living mode. People aren’t living, they’re just surviving,” said Munroe.

“It should be illegal to leave people outside in the cold. I’m worried about how many people we’re going to lose this winter. It makes me sick that there will even be one person.”

Donations to SAGE Clan Patrol can be made here: https://chuffed.org/project/105711-official-saskatoon-sage-clan-patrol-crowdfunding

Donations to 7^th Generation Rising Collective can be made here: https://chuffed.org/project/140946-7th