The death of an elderly man who had resided at The Junction coincided with another recent death at the supportive housing complex in Courtenay.
The elderly man had “underlying health issues” and had been in hospital, said Wendy Richardson, executive director of the John Howard Society of North Island, which operates the facility at 988 Eighth St.
The society does not know the cause of the other death, though the family of the man has been notified. The Coroners Service and RCMP are involved.
“We have plenty of older people with health issues there,” Richardson said. “We’ve had only one other (death) since we opened (last year), which was also an elderly gentleman with very severe health issues. These are expected.”
The Junction is a three-storey modular apartment building that is housing people who are experiencing homelessness. Residents pay $375 a month. The facility provides round-the-clock services.
READ: 46-unit supportive housing project opens in Courtenay
“We do work with a lot of people with very fragile health,” Richardson said. “In each case, the family has been so grateful that they’ve been living somewhere and getting supports while they were ill before they passed away. In the old days, they’d have been found somewhere.”
While there have been no cases of COVID-19 at The Junction, she says residents are feeling isolated from family and friends during the coronavirus pandemic. Most residents are accessing additional services from community partners, which are limited.
“I would say our residents are more vulnerable than they were before this crisis started. They need extra care.”
Richardson notes, however, that residents are helping to wipe down and maintain hygiene practices as the health crisis wears on.
“And we’re lucky to have a large number of fabric masks donated.”
The handmade masks came from quilting guilds in Campbell River and Quadra Island.
“The residents were so thrilled that people had made them masks,” Richardson said. “It’s a hard time for everyone right now, but given that, we’re doing as well as could be expected.”