It’s no secret that millions of people around the world lack stable, safe and secure housing. Unfortunately, the numbers only keep rising. It’s in part why Amanda Sterczyk and Shawna Thibodeau co-authored the book When We Each Do a Little, We Can Do a Lot.
Sterczyk, an Ottawa-based author, is best known for her wellness writing and, more recently, her foray into fictional crime stories.
She met Thibodeau at a women’s networking event in Ottawa. After Thibodeau was — unexpectedly to her — invited on stage to speak about her work, the event organiser, Catherine Landry, issued a challenge to the audience: What do you already have, without buying anything, that you can offer as support?
Sterczyk’s answer was to use her writing skills to help tell the story of Shawna’s Outreach.
Thibodeau is the driving force behind the local grassroots organization. You may have seen her posts on Facebook or caught her out in the community, offering support and care bags to unhoused and homeless people across Ottawa, including regular stops at Dundonald Park and through the Preston and Somerset Street areas.
The foundation of her work is the belief that there is already enough “stuff” in the world. Thibodeau argues that issues of scarcity are less about lack and more about how society shares — or hoards — resources.
“We already have enough to share. We don’t need to spend money,” she says.
When people offer to donate, she first asks them to consider what they already have on hand.
“I would rather you give me the toiletries you collected from hotels over the last 10 years,” says Thibodeau. “Or the package of underwear in your drawer that you’re not wearing — you opened it, took one out, and didn’t like them. Or the Costco-size box of snacks your kids don’t like anymore. Or you’re going through menopause — how many women go through it and they’ve got open pads, tampons and liners sitting in their house and are like, what do I do with this now?”
Originally from Nova Scotia, Thibodeau is no stranger to hardship. She and her son came to Ottawa in 2008 to escape an abusive home environment. Upon arrival, she experienced first-hand the challenges of accessing support while starting over with nothing.
With a background in education, Thibodeau began volunteering at her son’s school to meet Ontario Works’ requirements for volunteer work, which could potentially lead to employment. But even then, she struggled to cover basic living costs without a community or support system.
“Where I come from, if your roof needs fixing, you call up a bunch of neighbours, buy a case of beer, and fix the roof. So when I got [to Ottawa], I was already used to bartering and volunteering. I’ll give you my time, you give me whatever. But we don’t do that here.”
She recounts her time in a shelter prior to moving to Ottawa and how it sparked her future direction.
“At the time, I had nothing, and I went on Freecycle.com. I saw a woman looking for hotel-sized toiletries and purses to give to women in shelters — and I had received a purse in my shelter. So I messaged her and said, ‘Thank you for doing this, it really matters.’ And I said, ‘I have absolutely nothing to give you but my time. But if I can help, let me know.’”
That experience framed how she would build her life in Ottawa. It also inspired her long-standing commitment to volunteerism and advocacy for vulnerable, primarily homeless, populations.
The Shawna’s Outreach Facebook page describes her work as “helping vulnerable populations in Ottawa since 2009. Unpaid, unfunded, unstoppable.”
A scroll through the page shows post after post featuring donated items — from granola bars and water bottles to socks, backpacks, toiletries and gift cards — all quickly assembled into care bags and distributed.
“If I get stuff for outreach, I have a seven-day turnaround to make my bags and get to the street. But I can’t store this in my house,” Thibodeau says with a laugh. “My husband and I won’t be friends anymore.”
She explains that some people have asked why she doesn’t donate everything to shelters or food banks.
“Well, shelters and food banks have budgets for that nowadays. They get regular donations from a variety of companies. But there’s a whole other side — I don’t post a lot of what I do. A lot of it is behind the scenes: rescuing things, saving things, connecting people.”
“I’m involved in things where I’m helping save stuff from landfills — Amazon, Costco, Walmart. There are loads of tractor-trailers a day going to landfills in every city in this country because we’re a disposable society. And I was invited by one of the women who helps sort that stuff to see if we can find anything useful for the people on the street — at least give it one more life cycle before it ends up in the garbage.”