Vancouver, British Columbia – May 14, 2025
This week, Shelter Movers Vancouver is launching 10 transit shelter ads across the city to raise awareness about the urgent need for volunteers who can help move survivors of violence for free. As both Summer and the Chapter’s 1,400th move approach, Chapter Director Jessie Kaur Lehail reflects on what it will take to meet the community’s evolving needs.
“By placing these ads in transit shelters right now, we’re reaching people where they live and work to remind them that their support can change lives. As the need for our services grows in the Lower Mainland, every new volunteer means another family can find safety. This is a chance for communities to turn awareness into action, exactly when it matters most.”
About Shelter Movers
Shelter Movers is a national charity that provides moving and storage services at no cost to individuals and families fleeing abuse. Shelter Movers is the only service of its kind in Canada. Since its inception, Shelter Movers’ Vancouver Chapter has been instrumental in supporting survivors of intimate-partner and family violence in 13 regions across the Lower Mainland. Through partnerships with over 54+ local community agencies and 20 local business partners, the Vancouver Chapter facilitates an average of 19 moves each month, positioning them to move over 225 families from violence to safety in 2025 – all for free.
Lack of Stats a Misrepresentation of the Local Need
While Statistics Canada annually shares details about the rate of intimate-partner and family violence in British Columbia, categories and naming conventions used by the Vancouver Police Department and RCMP make it difficult to paint a clear picture of the need for survivor services. “The demand for our services has grown significantly since we began offering free moving and storage,” says Jessie. “In our first year, we moved an average of 9 families each month. That’s more than doubled in the past six years, and even though we moved 218 families last year, which included 222 children and 35 pets, there is more demand for our services than we can currently meet.”
Crime Rate Statistics in Vancouver make use of large categories and nonspecific naming categories, such as sexual assault and homicide, making it difficult to know how and where instances of intimate-partner and family violence are being represented. “We know from the conversations we’re having with our community partners that survivors are likely staying in abusive situations longer as the cost of living increases,” says Jessie, “and local statistics about rates of violence don’t even include intimate partner or family violence categories. Without a clear understanding of the rates of these types of violence in the community, survivor services like ours can’t properly coordinate our efforts.”
A staggering 48% of BC women have experienced some form of intimate partner violence since age 15. For Indigenous women and individuals in the 2SLGBTQIA+ community, that figure is higher, reaching 64% and 72%, respectively. (source).
Shelter Movers provides the plan, Vancouver volunteers make it happen
“This is a community-supported solution,” says Jessie, “our volunteers live and work in the same communities as the survivors we support. Our incredible team of volunteers has been the reason we can meet the demand for moves as we continue to grow across Vancouver, and with our 1,400th move now on the horizon, we know more support from the community is needed to ensure we have the resources to help once someone decides to leave.”
Every day, survivors of intimate-partner and family violence take courageous steps to reclaim their lives, and every resident of Vancouver can be a vital part of their journey. Volunteering with Shelter Movers as a mover or driver allows anyone in the community to provide essential support to families right in their neighborhood who are working to leave dangerous situations and start anew. Sign up today to volunteer and help create the Vancouver you want to live in.
Visit ShelterMovers.com/Volunteer to learn more.
