At the Old Brewery Mission, the men’s emergency services management team is female. On the occasion of International Women’s Day, March 8, The duty followed those who work on the move with gentleness and confidence in order to allow the most vulnerable to be helped.
On this rainy March noon, the tables are crowded in the Webster Pavilion, located in downtown Montreal, which can provide shelter for 197 people. Sitting on a chair in the local cafe, a respite stop which is open 24/7 for those who do not sleep there, a man soliloquizes in a loud voice, holding his head Between hands. Quickly, the coordinator of psychosocial services, Kenza Rougui, asked the team present to go to him.
On a daily basis, the 26-year-old Montrealer’s role is to guide the group of local workers, which is made up of as many men as women. The emergency services it offers include providing accommodation, food and support to those who need it.
Mme Rougui says she was first hired as a counselor at the Old Brewery Mission. “When I arrived, I said to myself: ‘I am a young veiled girl who enters an environment of men. I don’t know how it’s going to go.” »
Kenza Rougui, however, “took a risk” and fell in love with the place, she relates with her contagious dynamism. Then, little by little, she climbed the ranks until she joined the organization’s management team.
Not for just anyone
According to Mme Rougui, the women who manage the men’s emergency services have in common that they have a very assertive personality. They also know how to build strong bonds with those who frequent the organization. “When there’s a guy in front who’s disorganized and you have to put your foot down, it’s a lot easier when you know him,” she explains.
“Not just any woman can work here,” says Émilie Fortier, who heads the emergency services at the Old Brewery Mission. Several users have a serious criminal past, she continues. “You have to have self-confidence, and be able to protect yourself, maintain a distance, be firm and not be intimidated by men in general. »
When Mme Fortier was hired by the organization 12 years ago, she had few female colleagues at her side. “At the time, there was a certain pride here in offering a fairly strict framework. If you didn’t make your bed, for example, you lost your place after two or three times. We hired people based on the structure we wanted to give, so people with strong arms who will be very strict. »
With the gradual implementation of psychosocial intervention services, however, women have been added to the organization, indicates Émilie Fortier. The Old Brewery Mission also gradually abandoned its “strict” approach to instead promote the de-escalation of crises. “The idea is to find what the person needs and reassure them. »
Sweetness
Because of their past, many males who arrive at the organization wear a thick shell as a means of survival. “But once they come here, they see that we’re not trying to scare them. So there, we can be human to human,” says Mila Alexova, coordinator of local services. In particular, she oversees the mobile clinic at the Old Brewery Mission.
Gentleness is therefore an asset for those who come to work at the organization, believes Émilie Fortier.
While making her rounds, Kenza Rougui also takes the time to speak with everyone she meets. As she passes through the entrance to the building, she stops to chat in a low voice with a former user, before continuing on her way. “What I understood is that her request for medical assistance in dying was accepted,” she tells the Duty with emotion.
The man in question has suffered from cancer for years, which sometimes complicates his relationships with others, explains Kenza Rougui. “But he sometimes says to us: “Thank you, you are a sweetheart.” And that just knocks me to the ground,” she said, putting her hand to her heart.
Smile even when it’s “grey”
For her part, Mila Alexova is touched by the ability of employees and users to smile despite the “grey and trash » that they experience, she affirms. “After every heavy situation, there is always a little lightness. »
Like others, the organization does not accept gifts from its customers, indicates Mme Alexova. But when a former user comes to the door to offer flowers to the team, they are displayed in the building’s common areas. “These moments are so precious, because we work so hard,” says the 34-year-old.
The plants that adorn the office of Kenza Rougui and Mila Alexova also have great value for them, they emphasize. Mme Rougui relates that a man who frequented the Old Brewery Mission and who loved flowers died a year ago. “He really had a green thumb. When he died, he was not in the Webster pavilion, but rather in the Hôtel-Dieu shelter. So I went to get some orchids that he had left in his room there. »
Since then, the plant has never stopped flowering, emphasizes Kenza Rougui. “And for those who know, it’s super difficult to keep orchids alive,” she adds, her eyes shining.
Moments of helplessness
Both women admit to being sometimes, through touching moments, overcome by a feeling of helplessness.
This is the case for Mme Rougui when she struggles to relocate seniors who use the organization’s accommodation services to a residence or CHSLD, she confides. “It’s really difficult with the system. And it hurts to know that a 70 year old man is sleeping in a dormitory with lots of other men when he deserves to have a place where he can rest. »
In these moments of discouragement, it is all the more crucial to remember why we do this job, maintains Mila Alexova. “We choose this work every day, really consciously. Then I think, in fact, that when you no longer choose it, it’s because the environment is no longer made for you. And that’s okay. »
Kenza Rougui also considers how lucky she is to be excited to go to work every morning. “It’s worth all the gold in the world.” » Where does she see herself in the medium to long term? No idea yet. “Maybe I’ll still be here, maybe I’ll be somewhere else.” But all I know is that in the present moment, I love what I do. »