‘It puts a smile on my face:’ Saskatoon homeless snow angel clears icy streets

He’s been nicknamed Fairhaven’s snow angel, but he’s not exactly what your stereotypical angel might look like.

In fact, the man who spends hours clearing ice and snow from Saskatoon’s streets calls those same streets his home.

Robert Gamble, who has been homeless for six years, said he spends his days trying to give back to the Saskatoon community in any way he can. One of those ways is getting down on his hands and knees – sometimes in -40 C weather – and scraping sheets of ice from cement sidewalks and walkways with his drywall knife.

“It’s for the old people to come out and actually enjoy themselves,” he said.

Gamble said he tries to make his way all over the city, but his work can mostly be seen on sidewalks in the Fairhaven, Confederation and Lawson Heights neighbourhoods.

He explained that he started the work when he moved to the city from North Battleford 10 years ago. Since then, he said he’s noticed a lot of work that needs to be done around the community.

“Everything is upside down,” he said. “I walk through the streets and think, ‘Man, these streets should’ve been shoveled.’”

Gamble said he also spends his days picking up garbage and bottles from all over the city.

“I try and bag it the best I can and take it to the dump. I even clean dumpsters,” he said.

Gamble said he’s he noticed other homeless people often rummage through garbage bins and throw trash on the ground to go through it.
“In a way, I’m cleaning up after them,” he said.

Gamble said he’ll occasionally warm up at Fairhaven’s Emergency Wellness Center with a meal.

“I’ve tried to get myself a bed there, but I keep getting turned down,” he said. “It’s hard.”

Even when a bed is available, Gamble said there have been occasions where he has let other people take his spot at the centre.

“I’ll do cleaning throughout the night,” he said. “Sometimes (people) in the community will help me out with coffee, even a meal … I can’t always expect that.”

Gamble said people from the communities where he works have frequently expressed how grateful they are.

“It puts a smile on my face (that) somebody is thanking me,” he said.

Gamble said he often pays forward their acts of kindness by passing along coffee or food to his friends in the frigid weather. In his cart, he said he keeps clothes he finds to give to children and people who need them rather than keeping them for himself.

“What you see me wear is what I’ve got for clothing,” he explained.

Gamble said he shares his own story with the youths he helps, and encourages them to go to school and pass their wisdom and kindness on to younger generations.

Throughout his years living on the streets, Gamble said he’s experienced a lot of loss, including his cousin who froze to death this past winter.

He said he’s also seen the impact drugs like fentanyl have had on his friends and family.

“I would like the community to help us address our issues,” he said. “The drugs out here are vastly dangerous … We need help out here.”

Gamble’s actions have not gone unnoticed. A post in a Facebook Fairhaven community group made by Saskatoon resident Adam Terlesky recognized the work Gamble was doing after Terlesky saw him scraping ice off a sidewalk by a Burger King.

“He was polite, kind and respectful,” the post read.

“Just like any demographic, there’s gonna be a variety of personalities, bad apples, good apples, etc. etc. It costs absolutely nothing to be kind and kindness can change a person’s day.”