St. Boniface house condemned because of hoarding
A home in Winnipeg's St. Boniface area has been condemned and the owner forced to leave because it was overrun with years worth of stuff. Some consider that hoarding, but for the owner, his things are "nuggets of gold."
"They come here and condemned the house," said Mestdagh. "This is my home. I didn't want to go anywhere. But I really didn't have a choice in the matter."
In August, Mestdagh bumped into Marion Willis, the head of St. Boniface Street Links. The organization helps the homeless and connects them with resources to improve their lives.
Mestdagh told Willis his water had been shut off for more than two years. Willis asked if she could visit his home.
She wasn't prepared for what she saw. She couldn't get in the front door.
"Basically we took off the front door and were faced with a wall and we stood outside and threw things aside," Willis said.
"We literally dug our way into the house. After two months of work, and more than 10 huge trailers of stuff gone to the Brady landfill, it still looks like we haven't done anything."
Mestdagh said to some it may seem like it's garbage, but to him, there are nuggets of gold — such as a chainsaw he made himself, a brand new kerosene heater, an airhorn and piles of vintage toy trucks. Now he has to clear it all out.
"It's very hard. I can't sleep nights because of it. To me, it's stupid. It's not fair. It's not fair at all," Mestdagh said.
"I am minding my own business. I must admit since 1979, I gathered up a little bit of stuff, but it wasn't bothering anybody. It's all inside and behind the fence. I don't see why it's hurting anybody."
Homeowner refused help
City bylaw officers had visited the house a few years ago and cleaned it up, but they weren't allowed inside.
Someone from the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority also paid Mestdagh a visit. He refused help.
Now, according to Willis and Mestdagh, the city has condemned the house because it isn't safe.
The city won't comment about any property issue involving a homeowner, citing privacy issues.
Privacy causing harm instead of help, says advocate
Willis believes privacy legislation and human rights have become reasons for people not to get involved.
"I think we have legislated ourselves to a place where we actually cause harm to people now; it's not helpful. It's incredibly sad," she said.
"If there had been an intervention 10 years ago, when he was living outside of his house and sleeping in his porch because there was no room inside, maybe it could have been fixed. But there is no fixing this now. He's also a cancer patient who is a very sick man and has fallen through the cracks in that system too."
No financial help for moving
Willis says there are no funds available to help people such as Mestdagh move out of his house. She had to be creative.
She went down to the riverbank and got the help of about 10 homeless people. She put Street Links T-shirts on them and made Mestdagh the project manager. It was the homeless who came to help Mestdagh move items out.
Two Winnipeg companies donated trucks, paid dumping fees and sent a staff member to help.
"This has been a brutal process for him. There are no funds allocated towards hoarding," she said.
"It appears we are not in a place where mental health even considers hoarding a mental health issue in that it is reflected in policy. This is ground zero here."
Family relieved
Mestdagh's brother and sister-in-law have been at the house for weeks, helping Don out. For years, they knew there were problems, but they didn't know who to turn to for help.
"There was no intervention. We knew there was a problem but we didn't know where to get help for hoarding. We were at a loss. We tried to help him and told him the city will come after you because neighbours are complaining. It's a real mental issue. It's a big problem," said sister-in-law Gisele Mestdagh.
"He would get mad and yell because we were throwing things out and sometimes we would just have to leave," she added.
"He has a big heart. A heart of gold actually."
Gisele Mestdagh then burst into tears.
"We love him so much, you know, this is hard. This is really hard. Some people don't know how hard it is. "
Gisele said she sleeps a lot better now knowing Don is living at Red Road Lodge, a transitional house for the homeless.
"It's kind of a relief for family, because we were really very worried about him," she said.
"It really was a fire trap, this house. We were always concerned and said, 'You should clean it up. If there was a fire, you would never get out.'"
Wants to start hoarding task force
Marion Willis says this is the third case of hoarding in St. Boniface she has seen in the last few years.
In every instance, she says the houses had to be demolished.
And in every instance, she believes that person's life could have been changed dramatically if there had been an intervention.
She is trying to initiate a task force on hoarding — a hoarding response team including health officials, city departments, social agencies and the province. It would act immediately in urgent situations.
New home
Don Mestdagh is now sleeping in a room at Red Road Lodge. He jokes about the woman at the front desk keeping an eye on him and what he is moving into his room.
"They say I can't load it up," he said. "The girl says, 'I am watching you.' I figure what the hell, I am paying rent. I know I can't litter it up, but I should be able to bring what I want."
Willis has managed to find a buyer for Mestdagh's house.
Mestdagh feels he has lost part of his soul with each load that has been taken out.
"The new place, it's nice. But it's not home," he said. "The first time I woke up at Red Road, it didn't seem right because I am in a bed. A warm bed. I had no heat in my house."
New beginning
Mestdagh's family says as loads are hauled out, they see a change in Don.
For the first time in years, he is re-connecting with family. While things are still important, he is allowing people back into his life. And that gives them new hope.
"He showed up at Thanksgiving all cleaned up. Happy to be with us," Gisele Mestdagh said.
"We had a great time. We were so grateful we finally have him back with us."