Indigenous 
Submitted by Alexandra McQuay, Student, Community and Justice Services (CJS) program
My name is Alexandra McQuay, and I am a second‑year student in the Community and Justice Services (CJS) program. Last semester, I had the incredible opportunity to complete my placement with HomeBase Housing, working alongside their Street Outreach Team. That experience played a big role in inspiring me to organize a winter clothing drive—and it’s something I’m incredibly grateful for.
During my placement, I worked with individuals experiencing homelessness and addiction. HomeBase Housing, however, offers far more than outreach services. They provide transitional housing, Housing First supports, a low‑barrier shelter (IFTC), a family shelter (Lilly’s Place), and One Roof, a community hub for youth. I was fortunate enough to learn about and experience many of these services firsthand.
While I appreciated all aspects of my placement, street outreach stood out to me the most. It was during this work that I noticed HomeBase was running low on donated winter clothing—a critical need during the colder months. Seeing this gap pushed me to think about how I could help. Read more about this initiative
In my final weeks of placement, Amanda, the manager, mentioned the need for a variety of donated items, including winter attire. I offered to help track down donations, and that’s when the clothing drive began. I started small by reaching out to friends and family, and a couple of weeks later, I connected with Professor Derek Davies to expand the effort within the College community.
Since mid‑November, I’ve made four trips to HomeBase, each time delivering about two garbage bags full of donated winter clothing. I’m currently holding onto two additional bags as HomeBase needed time to manage storage space when I last visited. I plan to continue the clothing drive until early February, as the need for warm clothing continues throughout the winter.
If you have gently used winter clothing or other items to donate, I would love to hear from you. You can reach me by email at alexandra.mcquay@student.sl.on.ca. After the drive concludes, donations can also be dropped directly at HomeBase Housing’s main building, located at 540 Montreal Street in Kingston.
This experience has been incredibly meaningful to me, and I’m thankful for the support from classmates, faculty, and community members who have helped make a difference—one warm coat at a time.