Avery Kelly: It’s a dream come true!

The Sarnia Journal has partnered with local photographer Art Connolly to feature his captivating “Humans of Sarnia” series as he delves into the lives and experiences of everyday people in Sarnia.

"It’s a dream come true. I love doing it. This is exactly what I want to be doing in the early mornings. I love it.”

Avery Kelly is 19 years old. Most mornings, while much of Sarnia is still asleep, she is already downtown, preparing coffee, heating soup and getting Brightside ready to welcome the people who have come to depend on it.

Brightside grew out of Avery’s experience volunteering at the Grace Café, where she began volunteering when she was 17.

“I discovered it online through an article, and I was like, ‘I didn’t even know there was something like this in Sarnia.’ I was so excited.”

She had to wait until she got her driver’s licence before she could begin volunteering. Once she did, she threw herself into it.

“I was texting her every day. I was like, ‘I’ll volunteer as much as you need me to.’”

What Avery found at the Grace Café was more than a place to volunteer. She found a community. “They welcomed me into their community. There is a homeless community of sorts, and they’re kind of like family themselves. They welcomed me in.” The people she met there also became her friends.

“A lot of people are like, ‘It’s so good, what you’re doing,’ but they’ve been so good to me as well. They’ve been my friends. They appreciate me.”

When the Grace Café was preparing to close, Avery faced a decision. She could simply move on—or she could try to create something of her own. |

Then the opportunity appeared. The people who had been considering taking over the café ultimately decided against it, and the café was going to close

Avery saw her chance. “I was like, ‘Oh my goodness. This is my opportunity.’”

That day, she contacted the landlord. Then she wrote a five-page business plan and a fundraising plan.

Her first challenge was convincing her parents. “They pretty much made me their servant for a couple of weeks,” she jokes. “They were like, ‘You want Brightside? Do the dishes.’”

Eventually, though, they saw what Avery already understood: there was a need, and she had a genuine passion for meeting it.

She signed the lease at 18.

Brightside officially opened July 11.

Since then, Avery says, it has become busier almost every day. On some mornings, as many as 70 or 80 people have come through the doors. “I never had a way to count numbers. I was just guessing. I was like, ‘Probably around 50.’ But I started counting soup bowls and granola bars.”

For Avery, however, the numbers are less important than what happens inside. “I want it to be a safe place for people to come.”

There are guitars, art supplies, books, and games. People talk, laugh, make music, and sometimes simply sit quietly. Some sleep. Others come and go.

“One guy just dances. I’m like, ‘This is awesome.’ It’s just a space full of love and joy.”

Avery estimates that most of the people she serves are dealing with homelessness and addiction, while others are simply lonely.

“Everybody is welcome.”

She has also discovered something else: people want to contribute.

One morning, after coffee had spilled and the place had become chaotic, Avery watched as several people immediately began cleaning. “I had one guy mopping, one guy sweeping. Everybody—they love to help. They really do. When you give them the opportunity, they’ll take it.”

Even a seemingly ordinary chore like taking the garbage to the curb can become an opportunity for someone to feel useful. “They wish it was garbage day every day,” she laughs.

Avery and Brightside guests have gathered to walk around downtown picking up trash. "The community has been so supportive towards us, and we want to give back."

Avery believes that part of addressing homelessness requires looking beyond the circumstances people are experiencing today.

“I think one of the biggest causes is childhood trauma, or trauma in general.”

For her, the answer begins with something deceptively simple.

“Love your kids. Raise your kids. That’s the start of it.”

She believes cycles of trauma can continue from one generation to the next when people grow up without having experienced healthy relationships themselves.

“They don’t know because they haven’t been shown, so we have to show them.” That philosophy is central to Brightside.

Avery is also incorporating her Christian faith into the project, with sharing the Gospel a key part of what she hopes Brightside will accomplish. She believes that before people can hear about God’s love, they need to experience it through the way they are treated – with dignity, compassion, and unconditional love.

Avery says the most important message is simply making people feel cared for.

Brightside is still a young organization, and keeping it financially sustainable is one of Avery’s biggest challenges. She has invested her own money. Her parents have helped. She has also received donations from people who believe in what she is trying to accomplish.

Her next step is to establish a group of monthly donors who can provide consistent funding.

She is also planning fundraisers, including an open-mic night, and hopes to use her artistic talents to help raise money.

Avery has been painting since she was about 13. She began selling custom watercolor paintings when she was young and still paints homes, including some for real-estate agents. Creativity and entrepreneurship have always been part of who she is.

“I’ve always had that entrepreneur side, and then I’ve always had the side that is just looking for the overlooked and wanting to help people.”

Her days are full.

She works at Bean on a Mission, a coffee shop, and spends much of her remaining time working on Brightside.

She starts at Brightside around 7 a.m., although she often wakes at 4. She starts the coffee because it takes time to brew. Then she might skateboard downtown or visit the skate park before returning to prepare the food. “I love waking up early.”

She admits that the person she is today isn't necessarily the person she was a few years ago. Her family remains an important part of that life.

Her mother cuts watermelon for Brightside because Avery hates doing it herself. Her father helped build the Brightside website.

“One day I came home and my dad spent the whole day making the most beautiful website for me. I cried.”

Her parents may not be regular volunteers at Brightside, but Avery says their support is constant. “They support me. They’re so understanding.”

She has also been overwhelmed by the response from volunteers.

She received roughly 90 volunteer applications and now typically has several people helping her each morning.

“I was worried at the start. I was like, ‘I hope I can find enough volunteers because it’s early in the morning and you’re not getting paid.’ But I have a great group of people.”

Brightside operates five days a week, the original plan was to be open every day but Avery adjusted the schedule to protect herself from burnout. She takes Thursday and Friday off, in order to be open on the weekends when other services are closed. Someone advised her that she couldn't do everything herself forever.

“I thought that was wise advice.”

That may be one of the hardest lessons for someone who has discovered something she loves this much.

“I thrive when I’m busy. Before, when I didn’t have too much going on, I always knew I was going to thrive when I was busy.”

She pauses and smiles. “Volunteering once a week wasn’t going to cut it.”

At 19, Avery is already thinking beyond Brightside.

She dreams of creating a clothing brand, with part of the proceeds supporting Brightside. She would eventually like to see Brightside expand into other communities where she believes resources are needed.

But for now, she is focused on one place, one morning and one person at a time.

She wants Brightside to be somewhere people can come without judgment—to drink coffee, eat something, play a guitar, make art, talk to a friend or simply sit somewhere safe.

And perhaps that is what Avery has discovered through Brightside: helping people isn't necessarily about having all the answers.

Sometimes, it starts with opening a door.

And making sure someone knows they are welcome on the other side.

To learn more about Brightside please visit their Facebook page or visit their Instagram page.

Humans of Sarnia founder Art Connolly is a man fuelled by curiosity and a passion for connecting with people in Sarnia. Inspired by the renowned “Humans of New York” series, with a camera in hand, he captures the very essence of the individuals he encounters, preserving their stories through his lens. Follow his series at the Humans of Sarnia website and on Facebook.