Tent Town Mission
Tent Town may be poor, but many of its inhabitants are simple folk who make the best of their lot. Unlike those in Scurvytown, where being poor often derives from an unwise or immoral lifestyle, the people of Tent Town will usually accept help with the hope of one day giving back. The Mission seeks to provide the poor of Tent Town with compassionate, sustainable service. After all, a significant portion of the city’s eligible labor pool lives in Drac's End, and what is an economy without a lively and contented workforce?
The Mission is not only a source of hope, but also a place for folk to congregate in safety. Anyone who has a heart would hate for anything to happen to it. Mission vendors are vetted and surveyed periodically to make sure no one is being duped or cheated. In order to make the sellers feel safe, personnel from the infamous Warg Company patrol the marketplace daily. Of course, as much as these guards may discourage outright robbery, criminal elements still pilfer their way through the market every day.
Architecture
The Tent Town Mission is a single marketplace located in the heart of the largest pocket of Tent Town, just north of The Old City closest to the Temple District. The market is far cleaner than the surrounding shanties, a collection of open canopies that feature their wares on tables, baskets, stock boxes, etc. The air is always electric with the buzz of vendors and gossips. The space gets very crowded, which unfortunately makes it easy for pickpockets to do their job.
The market opens at sunrise and closes at sundown. If the weather is poor, it may be closed, accordingly, or at the very least have limited supply available.
History
Overwhelmed by the poverty in Drac's End, Sir Marmadon Verte began helping its people as best he could. He provided shelter for the downtrodden and leveraged cheaper providers of wholesome food. His charity became the basis for what is now the Tent Town Mission. In time, the mission expanded beyond food and started providing other goods and services as well, either through donation or second hand pickups and drop-offs. The size of the market space expanded to accommodate new vendors, who could only join with the permission of Sir Marmadon or his supervisor, Wills Shard.
Of course the demand can be overwhelming, and the queues have grown very long. It is common to see people line up during the night for the next morning when the market opens. Generally, though, they are orderly, even if the food is never quite enough. The Tent Town Mission has always offered a selection of bread, produce, and even sometimes meat at low prices. Now, aside from the basic foodstuffs, other goods can sometimes be found, such as milk and fresh water (courtesy of the Rainmakers Group), candles, oil, blankets, clothing, small kettles and other cooking utensils, tools, and so on. In some rare cases, stalls might feature delicacies such as coffee, or even imported spices or delicacies, which invariably are snapped up in no time. Generally, the more costly items such as milk or iron tools are brought in directly by the churches under The Seven.
All this goes on under the watchful eye of Wills Shard, Sir Marmadon’s administrator for the Mission. Wills has a number of volunteers who assist him, including Mrs. Miggins, a Tent Town stalwart.
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