‘Snow Angel’ program struggles with low numbers

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 21/12/2023 (1012 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

During its seven-year history, a city program designed to help seniors and people with disabilities clear snow in front of their houses has never worked effectively, city officials say.

As Brandonites carefully tiptoe on icy downtown sidewalks and clear snow in front of their homes to comply with the community standards bylaw passed earlier this year, those who are physically unable to clear their own sidewalk are told that the city’s “Snow Angel” volunteer program is available to help them.

But the program is facing low volunteer numbers this year and, in fact, has also struggled to get sufficient volunteer numbers since the program was started in 2016.

“Certainly, looking at it now, especially in view of some of the changes we’ve made to our community standards bylaw, there’s a need to find an alternative,” Brandon’s general manager of operational services, Patrick Pulak, told the Sun.

“Because I don’t think that the program by itself is working.”

The city’s new community standards bylaw was passed this summer. It requires homeowners to clear snow and ice from the sidewalks around their properties or risk a fine of up to $100. When the topic of the standard being applied to seniors or those with mobility issues came up, the city’s goodwill Snow Angels program was often raised as an option.

At a city council meeting about the bylaw in December 2022, Mayor Jeff Fawcett said neighbours often help out with snow clearing and added that the Snow Angel program was available, though he did note that it wasn’t used very much.

Currently the program has just eight participants — six applications for assistance and two volunteers.

And it’s not just an unusual year for the program either — the highest number of participants was 30 in the first year of the program in 2016. There were 14 applicants and 16 volunteers that year.

In 2017, numbers dropped to 25 (14 applicants, 11 volunteers) and continued to drop for the next year to 12 applicants and 10 volunteers.

Efforts to raise public awareness of the program in 2019 brought the numbers up to 25 — 10 applicants and 15 volunteers.

Amber Chapil, who works in the city clerk’s office and who manages the program, said that during the pandemic, participation dropped off.

“During COVID I didn’t get any phone calls,” she told the Sun. “It was like that program just went downhill.”

There were also other issues with a volunteer-led service, Chapil noted, like volunteers not going out to shovel every time there was a snowfall and the fact that the program only permits volunteers to clear municipal sidewalks and doesn’t allow them to shovel on private property, like a deck in front of a door.

“I would never have said it was a success for our community since being launched,” she said.

Brandon Seniors for Seniors Co-op executive director Eleysha Klaassen told the Sun that the organization does occasionally get phone calls asking if there is anyone offering snow-clearing services that they could be referred to. She said the organization usually refers people to a business or someone they know who offers shovelling services.

“It would be nice if we did have somewhere that we could call and somewhere that they weren’t charging,” Klaassen said. “Because so many of our people are on fixed incomes too.”

A receptionist at the Westman branch of Manitoba Possible, an organization that provides services and supports to people with disabilities, told the Sun that the organization does receive calls about snow-removal assistance but often refers people to the Snow Angel program.

Meanwhile, Coun. Kris Desjarlais (Ward 3) sees hope in the program’s future and told the Sun that the program just hasn’t been given the chance to recover since the pandemic.

“The Snow Angels program is a great opportunity for folks to give back,” he said. “And for those who have some challenges with following the obligations in the bylaw, to have volunteers there to help out.”

Desjarlais also emphasized the prevalence of the unofficial snow angels in Brandon — people who clear snow for their neighbours without signing up as volunteers.

“I think it’s a beautiful thing to watch after a 10-metre snowfall in our community because every single person with a snowblower on your sidewalk is out there and within a short time. Nearly the whole place is cleared regardless,” he said.

Still, the city councillor said he knows that not every neighbourhood in the city is served by the goodwill of neighbours and that a volunteer program would help low-income seniors be able to stay in their own homes.

“I would say that there are enough residents in the community that would struggle with that, that it warrants a response like the Snow Angels program or volunteer program to support those individuals,” Desjarlais said, adding that he intends to sign up as a volunteer for the program.

But now, with participation numbers sitting at eight in a city of around 51,000, Pulak said conversations about re-evaluating the program have been underway. He said that because the city is complaint-driven, there is no measure for the level of need for a free snow-removal service in the community. But Pulak said given Brandon’s aging population, the changes to the bylaw, and mild winter weather that creates more icy sidewalks, he expects the demand for the service to increase.

At this point though, he said it isn’t clear whether the Snow Angel program will be reworked or if an entirely new program will be created.

“I suspect that there’s going to be an interim solution that we have, and then try and figure [it] out,” Pulak said. “Because I think by the time that we reinvent this to be more successful, it might be March and it really doesn’t help people right now.”

More information and signup information is available on the City of Brandon Snow Angel program website.

» gmortfield@brandonsun.com

» X: @geena_mortfield