‘Just joy’: Dartmouth Pallet shelter home restores dignity and hope for resident

After experiencing homelessness for the last few years, Mariah Baker says she’s feeling a renewed sense of hope and determination since moving into a Pallet village in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia.

“You have more of a sense of dignity,” said Baker, who had been living in a tent encampment prior to moving to the Pallet village.

The village opened in January and has 45 single-unit shelters. Like The Village at Pine Tree Park, which opened in October, it has shared washroom and laundry facilities and a full kitchen, and residents have access to wraparound support services.

“These shelter villages do more than provide a place to live – they foster stability, restore dignity and help individuals reconnect with their community. Through a compassionate and sustainable approach to addressing homelessness, we are contributing to a stronger and more inclusive province for everyone,” said Joe Rudderham, the executive director of the Atlantic Community Shelters Society, which operates the village, along with two other villages in the Halifax Regional Municipality.

There are now six Pallet shelter villages across the province.

In 2023, the provincial government purchased 200 Pallet shelter units to provide emergency shelter for people experiencing homelessness across the province.

Read more about The Village at Pine Tree Park here.