Backyard shed to become a home

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A lot of people have sheds in their backyard but few if any have someone living in one. A Stoney Creek woman and a local business have built a shed that will become a temporary home for a homeless woman. They’re hoping to raise awareness, even if it means breaking city bylaws.

Her name is Kathleen. She has no I.D. A woman named Shannon, who does not want her face shown, befriended Kathleen about a year ago. Kathleen has slept in a tent in Shannon’s backyard for 7 months. “She’s probably the nicest person I’ve ever met she’s so kind, she’s so grateful she’s always full of smiles she never talks bad about anybody, doesn’t swear, doesn’t drink, doesn’t do drugs.”

The weather is getting colder. Shannon says she’s reached out to several social service agencies to try and get Kathleen help but without I.D. she’s getting nowhere. So she decided a heated shed will have to do.

A Stoney Creek business called ” In The Backyard” responded to a Kijiji ad Shannon posted pleading for help. Business owner, Peter Scholes was moved by Kathleen’s situation and has donated a two thousand dollar shed he and his crew are building themselves. “Why wouldn’t I? You know she’s…. she’s a lady who needs help and I can help her.”

Peter says he called Home Depot for help they’ve offered to provided insulation for the shed and they even offered to give him a toilet. Shannon says her neighbours have called the police on her for sheltering a homeless person in the backyard. Allowing someone to live in a shed violates the city of Hamilton’s bylaws but both Shannon and Peter say the attention may end on a positive note.

“If it’s not legal then somebody will come here and say we’ll do this and this to help so in the long run, she’s going to get help.”

“As soon as we can find out and I can get legal guardianship I’m going to look into getting her into a lodging home or nursing home.”

Shannon says she’s working with Hamilton Police to find out who Kathleen actually is. In the meantime, Shannon hopes this story will shed light on how “red tape” gets in the way of helping homeless people with mental health issues find shelter.