With winter in full swing, the prospect of freezing to death in a stairwell is all too real for over 5,000 homeless people in Toronto. The need for shelter space grows every year, and the City of Toronto often struggles to keep pace.

“I find it very difficult to refuse people entry when there are no other options open to them,” said Dennis Bruce, co-chairman of the Out of the Cold program at Blythwood Road Baptist Church.

Bruce convinced the Blythwood congregation to join the city-wide Out of the Cold program in 1995. The neighbourhood initially had reservations about the 120 street people that arrive for dinner every Saturday, 60 of whom spend the night sleeping on the Church’s basement floor.

The program, however, has grown into a source of pride for the neigbourhood. Blythwood is thought to be one of the safest shelters in the city.

“One of our guests said to me, ‘I love coming here because I can sleep with two eyes closed,’ ” said Bruce, who has built meaningful relationships with many of the guests since the program started.

Bruce once spent hours with a guest named Danny at Sunnybrook Hospital, helping him overcome his paralyzing fear of doctors so he could get vital treatment.

“When he came through the door 19 years ago, he was very defensive. We’ve become very friendly over the years. He trusts me completely,” Bruce  said.

Bruce often visits the Church of the Holy Trinity near the Eaton Centre. Reading the names of the homeless men and women who’ve died, on the stone monument there, he reflects on his work.

“Most of them didn’t have a start in life. These people died on the streets unloved and uncared for.”