She has organised Christmas card making, a crib tournament, and a bingo night in the lead-up to the big day, and has booked musicians to play at the shelter on Christmas Day. Since early November, housing support worker Colleen Kinch has been putting up decorations and planning holiday activities. Staff working at the Whitehorse Emergency Shelter are foregoing time with their families over the holidays so they can spend time with those seeking assistance at the shelter. And aren't spending time with their families and friends at home. So I think that just speaks to how incredibly lucky we are to have such a great group that works with us,' she said. 'A lot of our staff are willing, and choosing, to work over the holidays so they can spend time with folks here. Spurvey said the shelter's staff will be working around the clock over the holiday season to create a 'sense of community' for people who don't have homes or families. Maybe relationships aren't as close as they were, or have been estranged,' she said. Some people are feeling sadness, feeling grief. 'There's a lot of happiness, there's a lot of celebration, but on the other side, it can be a really difficult time of year for people to process. Connective senior manager Kaitlyn Spurvey said that those marking the festive season at the shelter tend to be experiencing 'a lot of different emotions.' The shelter at 405 Alexander Street is run by the Council of Yukon First Nations and Connective, a social services non-profit. Staff anticipate about 40 people will also need a place to sleep on Christmas, and say many are in need of warm clothes. One of the largest Christmas Day gatherings in the Yukon this year will take place at the Whitehorse Emergency Shelter where up to 300 people are expected for a turkey lunch.

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