Red Deer series profiles homelessness through Stacey Gauthier's story
The third part of rdnewsNOW's 'More Than A Number' series follows a 40-year-old man navigating homelessness in Red Deer while calling for more support for shelters and housing.
Why it matters
The story highlights ongoing gaps in shelter funding and housing affordability affecting Red Deer's homeless population ahead of a major new shelter project.
Stacey Gauthier, 40, originally from Rocky Mountain House, has been without stable housing for three years following the end of his marriage. He is featured in Part 3 of rdnewsNOW's four-part series 'More Than A Number,' produced with interviews facilitated by Hope Mission, which runs Red Deer's emergency homeless shelter.
Gauthier told rdnewsNOW he wants his sons to know he never gave up and that he hopes to find permanent housing again. He pointed to a lack of financial support for shelters, beds, cleanliness and food, as well as high housing costs, as major barriers facing people experiencing homelessness.
Gauthier, who is Indigenous and holds full status, said having health care, optical and prescription coverage sets him apart from others in the homeless community who lack those supports. Red Deer's 2024 Point in Time Homeless Count found 747 people experiencing homelessness, with 32 per cent identifying as Indigenous, compared to just over six per cent of the city's overall population according to the 2021 census. The 2025 count recorded 645 people but did not break down demographics.
When told about Project Nexus, a planned social care and emergency shelter campus on Red Deer's north end expected to open its first phase in 2027, Gauthier said he was unfamiliar with the project but supportive of its location near the Olymel plant.
Compiled by the Alberta Daily Desk — an AI-written summary of reporting from the credited sources below, produced and reviewed under our editorial policy.