There are few, if any, parishes in Toronto that had three shooting deaths in the first month of the year and followed them up with two more in the next few months. Add to this an epidemic of drug overdoses and a picture of lawlessness could emerge.

MONTREAL – Claude Paradis was impoverished and homeless, living on the streets of Montreal. He struggled with addiction to both alcohol and drugs, with a future so bleak, he considered ending his own life.

TORONTO – Nick Beckett is an impressive young man in his third year at the University of Toronto working towards a criminology degree. As he makes his way through exams, he’s also heading up a new non-profit which aims to provide a home and transitional programs to young people who age out of the child welfare system.

MONTREAL - Pope Francis has been invited to Montreal in 2017 to participate in celebrations marking the city’s 375th anniversary.

TORONTO - Covenant House is stepping up to give young women and girls caught in the grip of the sex trade a way out.

When temperatures dropped to -12 degrees Celsius in early January, a homeless man dressed only in a t-shirt and jeans was stuck on the cold streets of downtown Toronto. Vulnerable to the freezing temperature and bitter winds, he sought protection in a bus shelter.

The Good Shepherd doesn’t want Torontonians to forget there are people living on the streets, sleeping in doorways, eating whatever they can find while the rest of us shop for the perfect Christmas morning surprise.