My family lived in a hotel for a year. I wish people understood homelessness isn’t a choice [Video]

This First Person column is the experience of Terri Singer, who lives in Halifax. For more information about CBC’s First Person stories, please see the FAQ. 

There was a time not so very long ago when we were just your average Canadian family. A mom, a dad, three children. We rented a four-bedroom house in the cozy little town of Truro, N.S. We lived in that home for over four years and had a wonderful community of family and friends living nearby.

I worked as a sales and events co-ordinator at a hotel. It was a job I loved and I looked forward to seeing my clients and colleagues every day. My husband had been a cook, but was let go from his job and was seeking mental health support with endless waitlists. We had been trying to save for a down payment on a home, but that became impossible on my single …