End Homelessness Winnipeg
Together we can end homelessness in Winnipeg
End Homelessness Winnipeg is launching the search for our next Chief Executive Officer.
As an Indigenous-led organization, we are guided by Indigenous Ways of Knowing, Being, and Doing in our work to end chronic houselessness and build a community where everyone belongs.
The CEO will play a critical role in advancing our 2025–2030 Strategic Plan, strengthening partnerships, and leading with integrity, vision, and accountability.
MEDIA RELEASE
For Immediate Release
August 28, 2024
2024 Winnipeg Street Census Reflects National Rise in Homelessness
Winnipeg, MB – End Homelessness Winnipeg has released the results of the 2024 Winnipeg Street Census (Point-in-Time Count), showing a sharp rise in homelessness locally that mirrors increases seen across Canada. The count, done over 5 days found that on November 5, 2024, 2,469 people were experiencing homelessness in Winnipeg, nearly double the 1,256 counted in 2022, and the highest figure in the city’s 10-year Street Census history.
Winnipeg’s Point-In-Time Count was funded by the Government of Canada and conducted in partnership with the provincial, city and Indigenous governments, community organizations, and lived experts, alongside more than 70 communities nationwide that participated in the 2024 coordinated Point-in-Time Count.
Key Findings from the 2024 PiT Count
Like other Canadian cities, Winnipeg’s data highlights persistent systemic pathways into homelessness, including discharges from child welfare, health, and justice systems.
What Needs to Be Done
The 2024 Winnipeg Street Census identifies clear priorities to help reduce homelessness:
“These numbers represent real people – relatives, neighbours and friends who deserve dignity, safety and stability. These findings tell us that homelessness is preventable. It is the outcome of systemic gaps we can address,” said Justin Woodcock, on behalf of the Board of Directors of End Homelessness Winnipeg. “The Street Census gives us a roadmap and challenges us as a community to respond with urgency and compassion.”
The Honourable Bernadette Smith, Minister of Housing, Addictions, Homelessness and Mental Health, Province of Manitoba, brought greetings on behalf of the Province. She spoke about her own family’s early experiences of homelessness and the importance of ensuring people have the right supports to stabilize and succeed.
“Homelessness is complex, shaped by poverty, trauma, discrimination, and the intergenerational impacts of colonization,” said Minister Smith. “That’s why our government launched Your Way Home, a strategy not only to secure housing but to ensure people have the wraparound supports needed to maintain it from family reunification to education, skills training, and healing.”
Minister Smith highlighted recent provincial investments in affordable housing, including a commitment to dedicate 20% of Manitoba Housing units to a Housing First model with wraparound supports. She also emphasized the importance of partnership, noting collaborations with End Homelessness Winnipeg, municipal governments, the federal government, and community organizations.
“This is heart work. It takes all of us: governments, service providers, and community members working together with compassion. Most importantly, we thank the people with lived experience who continue to share their stories and guide us in building solutions. Our priority is clear: getting people out of tents and into safe homes, with the services they need to live full and successful lives. No one in this country should be without a home.”
Adding the perspective of lived experience, Ash Burkowski, a Street Census Steering Committee member and lived experience advisor, underscored the urgency of collective action:
“The true measure of a society is how it treats its most vulnerable members. The Street Census is more than data, it is the voices of our relatives, shared with hope and urgency, asking us to listen and act. With this report, Winnipeg faces a choice: will we lead with compassion, cooperation, and a commitment to the common good, or will we allow inaction to deepen the crisis? We need accessible, affordable housing, adequate incomes, and wraparound supports for mental health, recovery, and healing. The people who shared their stories trusted us to carry them forward, and it is now up to leaders and all of us as a community to act with courage and compassion.”
Al Wiebe, lived experience advocate and host of the radio show Of No Fixed Address, reinforced the human impact of homelessness and the importance of the Street Census:
“I spent 29 months on the streets, and there is nothing redeeming about being homeless. That experience left a hole in my heart, but also a fire to help others. The Street Census matters because it doesn’t just count numbers, it tells us why people are out there, whether due to mental health, addictions, poverty, or systemic failures. We cannot change policy unless we understand the reasons. Just as important, the Census changes perceptions. Volunteers who meet people on the streets for the first time often return transformed, realizing that those experiencing homelessness are no different than any of us. That awareness is powerful. It is how change begins.”
About the Winnipeg Street Census
The Winnipeg Street Census (Point-in-Time Count) has been conducted in 2015, 2018, 2021, 2022, and 2024. Along with data from over 70 communities across Canada, it provides one of the few reliable sources of information on unsheltered homelessness and informs the development of policies, programs, and advocacy to prevent and end homelessness. The next Winnipeg Street Census will be conducted in fall 2025, with results expected in winter 2026.
Please download a copy of the 2024 Winnipeg Street Census Report and infographics.
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Media Contact
Oraye St. Franklyn
Harm Reduction Saves Lives: EHW Supports Sunshine House’s Push for Federal Exemption
August 12, 2025
End Homelessness Winnipeg is concerned by the politicization of harm reduction in the City of Winnipeg, a life-saving public health approach that should never be reduced to talking points or selective statistics. Lives are at stake, and our shared focus must remain on protecting them.
Since 2022, Sunshine House’s Mobile Overdose Prevention Site (MOPS) has been a cornerstone of community safety, Manitoba’s first sanctioned supervised consumption site, and a critical link to treatment, recovery, and other supports. Even after the loss of its original vehicle in July, MOPS continued operating without interruption, quickly adapting to the crisis and offering supervised inhalation services in over 95% of visits, along with naloxone kits, safer use education, and other essential supports.
In July 2025, MOPS staff responded to 27 overdoses, a 286% increase from the same month last year, often providing life-saving intervention especially in neighbouring community spaces away from the MOPS site. These are not numbers to be weaponized. They are lives saved, families kept whole, and opportunities for recovery preserved.
The people served by MOPS often face intersectional stigma, discrimination and structural marginalization. These are multiple, overlapping judgments about their identity, health, and circumstances that deepen their marginalization and limit access to care. Harm reduction counters this by meeting people where they are, offering safety, dignity, and connection, and creating pathways to stability and recovery.
Our community’s response to substance use must be rooted in dignity, safety, and care. The dedicated direct service staff working in harm reduction across our province demonstrate these values daily. They are trained in overdose recognition and response, trauma-informed care, and cultural safety. Their work is not only professional, it is life-saving. These are the people who stand between crisis and recovery, often at great personal risk, because they believe every life is worth protecting. They should not be the target of unfounded attacks or mischaracterizations that diminish their skill, dedication, and the critical role they play in keeping our communities safe.
Harm reduction works. It is about dignity, compassion, and connection. It is also evidence-based as it reduces the spread of infections, prevents severe health complications, and creates pathways to stability. Sunshine House’s work, including its Bimosedaa program for the 2SLGBTQIA+ community, is a model of what happens when we meet people where they are and walk alongside them toward wellness.
We, therefore, urge federal decision-makers to grant the exemption needed for Sunshine House to operate a new supervised consumption vehicle. And we call on our community to walk together in unity, rejecting narratives that shame or divide. The safety, dignity, and future of our relatives and neighbours must rise above partisanship. In a city as compassionate as ours, protecting life should not just be a policy choice, it has to be our shared duty.
Winnipeg, MB – August 5, 2025
End Homelessness Winnipeg (EHW) acknowledges the conclusion of Jason Whitford’s tenure as Chief Executive Officer. The Board of Directors extends its heartfelt gratitude for his leadership and contributions during a period of growth, reflection, and renewed purpose for the organization.
Jason brought wisdom, humility, and unwavering commitment to EHW’s vision of ending houselessness through Indigenous-led, community-driven approaches. During his time as CEO, he helped shape and launch the 2025–2030 Strategic Plan, strengthening the organization’s identity as an Indigenous-led foundational organization serving all peoples.
“Jason’s leadership grounded EHW in deeper community accountability and helped guide our evolution with clarity and care,” said Jennifer Wood and Samantha Brown, Co-Chairs of the Board. “His ability to bridge vision with practical action enabled us to move forward with renewed purpose. We are thankful for his time with us and wish him every success in his next chapter.”
With Jason’s departure, the Board is now undertaking a thoughtful and values-aligned transition. This includes identifying interim leadership and preparing for a culturally grounded search for EHW’s next CEO. The transition will continue to honour the organization’s commitments to Indigenous Ways of Knowing, Being, and Doing; cultural safety; and systems change.
“Our direction remains clear,” the Co-Chairs added. “We are focused on supporting our staff, strengthening partnerships, and advancing the work outlined in our Strategic Plan. The mission to end houselessness continues, and we remain deeply committed to walking this path in collaboration with community.”
EHW will provide further updates as the transition progresses. In the meantime, the organization continues its work alongside partners and direct service staff across the city to realize a future where everyone belongs and has a home.
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Media Contact:
Oraye St. Franklyn
Manager, Communications and Community Relations
ofranklyn@endhomelessnesswinnipeg.ca
431-323-8896
End Homelessness Winnipeg is developing the Winnipeg Affordable Housing Strategy; a community-informed guide to expanding safe, suitable, and affordable housing options across the city.
We’re inviting you to share your voice through a short community survey. Whether you’ve experienced housing insecurity, precarious housing, or are currently navigating houselessness, your input is vital in identifying the real challenges and solutions that matter most.
Complete the survey by Sunday, August 31, 2025, for a chance to win a $100 Walmart gift card.
Help Shape Winnipeg’s Affordable Housing Future. Together, we can build a housing system where everyone belongs.
