There's a story behind every face
“The stereotypical image of homelessness, is a man with substance abuse problems, mental health issues, or both. But in the current economic climate, the face of homelessness also includes women, families, and the elderly, often people who are simply down on their luck. There's a story behind every face, and it could be my story. It could be your story. People who are experiencing homelessness are our neighbors.” -By Lindsey Wahowiak
Every human being deserves warmth, protection and dignity. It’s as simple as that. Yet, in the United States on a single night during 2018, 182,000 people were forced to sleep outside and left vulnerable to the harsh elements.
Homelessness is on the rise and especially with the costs of housing skyrocketing, some are just one paycheck away from becoming homeless. Many cities have focused funds on providing temporary housing to those in need, but overcrowding is a huge issue that leaves many feeling unsafe, and without privacy.
Our ultimate mission is to end homelessness, but we also understand this will not happen overnight. So we want to offer our solution to protect those in need right now.
We produce the Sheltersuit a wind- and waterproof coat that can be transformed into a sleeping bag. It is a product designed for people in need that, for whatever reason, have to survive the harsh conditions that come with living on the streets. The Sheltersuit is free of charge to people experiencing homelessness.
How the Sheltersuit Foundation came to be
In 2014, after losing the father of a friend to hypothermia, that was due to not being able to protect himself against the cold weather conditions while living on the street, Bas Timmer decided that something had to be done. At the time Bas had started his own line of clothing after finishing at the fashion academy. But it didn’t feel right to him to sell fashionable clothing at a high price, whilst many people couldn’t even afford warm and protective clothing to simply survive. No one deserves the horrible fate of freezing to death because they can’t afford decent protective clothing. Because of this, Bas was motivated to make a change and ultimately developed his first Sheltersuit.
Since then, Sheltersuit has produced over 10,000 suits and donated 6,000 to those in need all over Europe.
During his stay in New York, Bas handed out 100 Sheltersuits to the homeless in and around the big city. When travelling through the United States, Bas was confronted with the crisis of people experiencing homelessness daily.
Bas: “I have met so many homeless my age. There was this one guy called Richard, unexpectedly lost his job as a chef… couldn't pay his rent anymore, he looked for something more affordable.. but due to New York City's shortage of affordable housing reaching crisis point, he became homeless.
