Hit play on the above video to hear about the homeless memorial & isolation and loneliness in homelessness. Or listen to the audio if you prefer to explore the memorial yourself.

CONSTRUCTION NOTICE! To get to the next location requires some creative navigation around city construction areas. We recommend once you pass the Citadel Theatre on the east side of 99th street, that you cross to the west side of 99th street, cross to the south side of Jasper avenue at the lights (so you are on the same side of the road as the Edmonton Convention Centre). Head east along Jasper Ave and stop opposite 97th St, the Great Divide!

Homeless Memorial

You’re standing in front of Homeless Memorial. Pause the video for several minutes and take in the sculpture before you.  Study the posture of the figure in the doorway. Raise your gaze and look through the window – you can see what is on the other side, but the door is closed. 

Then walk around the memorial, focusing on the tiles. Don’t rush…each one tells a story. Which tiles stand out to you? Why? Try and put yourself in the place of the artist.  And then when you are ready, press play to resume.

Homelessness is synonymous with loneliness, isolation, and often “the sense of being forgotten by friends and family, strangers and society.” Once a person or family finds themselves without permanent housing, it can be difficult or even impossible to get reconnected with a social network, which inevitably draws the person into a devastating cycle of poverty, because access to jobs, safety, and physical and mental health all rely on the ability to connect meaningfully with others.

Two Edmonton artists, Keith Turnbull and Ritchie Velthius, were commissioned by the Edmonton Coalition on Housing and Homelessness to design a sculpture to honour Edmontonians who lack adequate housing, and to inspire all Edmontonians to work together to make safe, affordable housing available for every person. With guidance from Keith and Ritchie, twenty-two potential artists from the inner city created the tiles that border the doorway. 

Velthuis reflects on his experience working together, “Every tile artist was paid an honorarium, particularly important as validation of the artwork they created. “As a working artist, I am constantly reminded that we are all just a few unfortunate circumstances away from homelessness. We are all just people trying to find our place in the world, and the strength of our community can be measured by the support that we give our most vulnerable populations.” 

The memorial was commemorated on May 13, 2016, and is the site of an annual service in memory of those who have lost their lives either directly or indirectly as a result of not having a home.

Now, let’s continue walking east along 103rd Ave and then south on 97th Street until you reach Jasper Avenue.

As you walk… think about how you might be able to ease some of the loneliness for people on the street with small gestures of kindness – making eye contact, smiling, asking how their day has been and really listening to the answer. 

Think also of your own neighbours.  Consider extending love, support and real help, taking the time to talk to them and establishing a bond of trust so that if and when they need help, they can let you know. We hope for systemic change, but the system includes each one of us.

As Archbishop Desmond Tutu said, “My humanity is bound up in yours, for we can only be human together.”

CONSTRUCTION NOTICE! To get to the next location requires some creative navigation around city construction areas. We recommend once you pass the Citadel Theatre on the east side of 99th street, that you cross to the west side of 99th street, cross to the south side of Jasper avenue at the lights (so you are on the same side of the road as the Edmonton Convention Centre). Head east along Jasper Ave and stop opposite 97th St, the Great Divide!