Author Archives: The Ottawa Mission

Further to the unanimous declaration of a housing emergency and crisis last week by Ottawa city council, homelessness in our community has gotten worse and given the urgency and magnitude of the problem, action is needed across federal, provincial and municipal governments to increase affordable housing.

Homelessness is a highly stigmatizing condition and those affected can feel overwhelming shame, helplessness and exhaustion.

As homelessness increases, shelters in Ottawa are either full or operating at over capacity: at the Mission, we’ve been operating at over 100% capacity for well over 2 years.

We need public spaces where those who are homelessness can go to find warmth and relief.

Both within Ottawa and nationally, concern about homelessness is widespread: according to pollster Nik Nanos, ‘a majority of Canadians reported that someone they cared about was at risk of being homeless.

When you walk down the street in your neighbourhood, one in five of your neighbours have someone they care about and think that person may have a high or medium risk of being homeless.’

So this issue affects not just those who are homeless, but also those who care about them.

Volunteers are the heartbeat of The Ottawa Mission.

In fact, more than 250 volunteers come by The Mission each week to help with everything from meal preparation and serving to providing tutoring services for the Stepping Stones Learning Centre.

Individual, group, and corporate volunteers are all invited to come and share their love and time. But there is one group, a family of five in fact, who regularly devote their time and effort to support the ongoing work of The Ottawa Mission.

Irene and Viraf Mahava came to Canada from Mumbai, India where they met and eventually had a family; namely, Hufarish, Ferzin, and Anita.

Mum and Dad instilled in their children’s hearts a life-long family belief in sharing what they could with the community.

As so often happens, busy lives grew busier. Irene worked as a financial advisor and Viraf spent long days managing the dry-cleaning business he started when he first settled in Canada. The kids were off at school.

Schedules and demands meant that volunteering for the Mahavas, individually and as a family, slipped by the wayside for a few years.

But, sometimes it takes a shock in life to remind us of what is important.

For the Mahavas, that shock struck in 2014 as a serious illness that turned their world upside-down. But adversity touched their hearts, and they once again gathered together in a commitment to give of their time and energy for a greater cause.

That was when, as Anita tells it, the Mahavas found The Ottawa Mission.

“The welcoming atmosphere, the thankful and kind clients, and the incredible staff is what keeps us coming back,” Anita shares. “We don’t think we would be able to call it a holiday if we didn’t get to come and spend time at The Ottawa Mission. It has become our family’s favourite tradition, and as our family continues to grow, the part we look forward to most is bringing them to The Mission and showing them what an incredible community we have the honour of being a part of.”

This kind-hearted family is already looking forward to returning to The Mission to serve up a delicious Easter meal to our guests.

Sincere gratitude to the Mahavas and all of our wonderful volunteers and donors who make all the difference!

NAV Canada is a company that works quietly behind the scenes to ensure the safe movement of aircraft at airports and in Canadian skies. It manages 3.3 million flights a year for 40,000 customers!

That quiet dedication and concern for safety makes NAV Canada a natural ally in our community’s efforts to get the homeless off the streets of Ottawa.

Coldest Night of the Year (CNOY) is a family-friendly walking event that raises money for Ottawa’s homeless community, and NAV CANADA has been a devoted partner for several years.

Andrew Norgaard is a VP at NAV CANADA, and began volunteering with his family in The Mission’s kitchen about 6 years ago.

“My motivation to volunteer was my son,” Andrew shares. “My spouse, who works in social services, and I wanted our son to appreciate his lot in life and have a comprehension of what the full picture of society looks like.”

NAV CANADA Cares is a program that tailors charitable support to grassroots initiatives with which employees are involved. Andrew was able to tap into a matching fund and rally colleagues to the aid of The Mission.

“The effort here in Ottawa is based on employees getting together, really recognizing the value The Mission brings to the community. We’ve banded together to raise some funds, and our awesome company steps in and matches what we raise!”

Last year, Andrew rallied a team of 20 CNOY walkers whose donations, matched by NAV CANADA, totalled more than $16,000. The Mission’s guests were deeply appreciative! Individuals, teams, and companies can help raise funds by participating in this year’s CNOY.

You may also experience a bit of what it feels like to wander the icy winter streets wondering if and where warmth and shelter can be found. And remember, your generous support and participation makes all the difference in the world.

The Ottawa Mission has come a long way since it began as a humble shelter for homeless men back in 1906.

What started as a haven of warmth and food has become an array of support services whose goal is to change lives for the better. A home of one’s own is perhaps the greatest symbol of a healthy and productive life in our society.

The Mission’s Manager of Housing Services, Marc Gallant, recognizes that “shelters will always be necessary, but they have a critical role to play in ending homelessness.”

The strategy is powerful. Being Housing-Focused is a collaborative effort across The Mission’s various departments to help guests from the moment they arrive to prepare and transition to live independently.

“Our Housing Department was created from our most recent strategic planning phase,” says Marc, “because we identified that our housing services had been growing.”

Guests may arrive at The Mission for only a short stay and may never need any staff involvement. Others may require a lot more staff and program support.

Shifting to Prioritize Housing

Client Services was the umbrella department for many programs, but a plan was needed to reflect the growth and variety of housing services, and so, in May 2019, the new Housing Services Department was created. It currently has 7 staff members. Two additional staff positions have had a huge impact. A Shelter-Based Case Manager is on site to meet new guests and support the intake process, which is done through a guided script and questions.

At that point, other options for safe, alternative housing are explored. If none are available, guests are given a list of resources, both internal and external, and that gets the housing conversation started.

The other responsibility of our Housing Department is to engage and meet with our guests to identify and work towards a housing plan.

The Housing Department oversees two buildings, and the two 2nd stage homes located in the Ottawa Community.

“We want to try and make someone’s stay with us as brief as possible,” shares Marc, “but to become housing focused entails much more than just a dedicated housing department. It means a change in the culture of how we think about shelters and the delivery of services.”

A housing-focused shelter recognizes that housing is a human right because it provides wellness, dignity, and the ability to live a wholesome life. Its aim is to make the experience of homelessness as brief as possible. Housing-Focused is compassionate and low barrier, recognizing that a shelter is not a home, and that guests deserve more.

A Home For Michel

One such guest is Michel, who has recently set up his own apartment at one of The Mission’s community housing locations.

“It’s lovely,” beams Michel. “Hardwood floors. Large one bedroom. My kitchen’s super big!”

A bonus for this recent graduate of the Food Services Training Program (FSTP) who is about to start a job with a booming Ottawa coffee and food company.

Michel is not shy about his past. A young man living with the stress and anxiety that comes with growing up in a violent home where dealing drugs seemed to be the only way to make money and cope.

He shared his history with the audience of the FSTP graduation ceremony.

“I ended up at The Mission, court ordered six months. It was either go to jail or come here. When the cops came, it ruined all the trust I had built up with my family,” he shared earnestly. “Luckily there was the trauma services and the addiction program.”

Michel eventually met Chef Ric and learned about the FSTP.

Today Michel is clean, trained, employed, housed, and loves going to the gym. Michel was a lost soul for most of his troubled life. His own home was not a place of security, but rather one of fear.

For Michel, family meant uncertainty and loss rather than roots and wings. It took a court order for him to learn about a set of supportive programs at The Mission that helped him truly find his way home.

The Mission has taken on the feeling of a family for Michel, and he looks forward to returning as a volunteer “because the place has done so much for me. It’s time to give back.”

Y0ur Support Helps Find People Homes

Your kind support of a number of essential Ottawa Mission programs has helped Michel and many others along their journey home.

At this time when days grow brighter and Easter approaches, please remember that your donations bring light into many troubled lives. Thank you!

Shirley is the type of person you just want to wrap your arms around and hug.

A conversation with her is a cheery, delightful event, and her voice echoes a life that has known a lot of love. But Shirley has recently lost her husband Reg, the love of that life, at the early age of 75.

Reg worked for the international division of the Royal Bank and the couple enjoyed exciting postings in Beirut, Amsterdam and Paris.

Upon returning to Canada, Reg and Shirley felt so blessed by the lives they were given that they looked for ways to share their good fortune.

“We have no family,” Shirley reflects, “and we never exchanged gifts, so we’d spend Christmas at The Mission. Our gift was to help others. We always did.”

Reg and Shirley had been kindly volunteering at, and donating to The Ottawa Mission since 1999. When it came time for estate planning, they both remembered The Mission and all it does, as a deeply meaningful way to honour a wonderful life together.

Easter is a time when we reflect upon the temporal nature of life and the passing of the years as days grow brighter and warmer.

There are many ways you can include The Mission in your estate planning to help those served by its many outreach programs and services. Your gift will continue to help change lives for the better.

If you would like more information, please contact Angie Kelly, Director, Major and Planned Giving at 613.234.1155 x 426 or by email at akelly@ottawamission.com.

The Ottawa Mission’s Food Services Training Program (FSTP) held a graduation event on December 19th in the dining room. It was a celebration of hard work, fortitude, and the determination by graduates to build lives filled with opportunity.

A class of 12 individuals completed the FSTP’s rigorous 5-month program and are ready for work in the food services sector.

In fact, they have all found jobs! Pride radiated from the faces of everyone who received their certificate from Chef Ric.

The occasion was also marked by a big announcement about the FSTP’s upcoming expansion.

Sessions typically receive dozens of applications for 14 spots, so Chef Ric recognizes that “obviously there is a need to expand the program, and when we do we are hoping to train 75 students over the course of a year.”

The FSTP has offered fall and winter sessions, but that is expected to grow by an additional one, maybe two sessions per year once things are rolling.

This puts a new level of demand on the existing physical resources, so “we’re looking for an off-site kitchen where we would house the students and do all of the catering that is part of the program,” say Chef. “The kitchen here at The Mission already serves 1,450 meals a day to guests, plus the catering service plus 28 students, so the kitchen is just bursting at the seams.”

Chef Ric is confident that the team of supporters searching for the right location close by will have good news very soon.

Hyacinth is a graduate with big hopes for the future.

“Cooking has always been my passion,” she shares, “and it has always been my dream. I feel like one day I will look back on this graduation as the day when I started, and I am so proud!”

Hyacinth was offered a job in her first interview because of the wide variety of food skills she learned in the FSTP. “I’m working long hours, but it’s my passion and I know I’ll be on top.”

Your generosity helps all the graduates feel like they are on top of the world.

By the time Easter arrives, your support will be helping make the expansion of this program possible for many more individuals seeking a life-changing experience.

MEDIA RELEASE
January 21, 2020

Ottawa Mission releases Nanos Research national public opinion poll on homelessness that shows strong support for action by all levels of government

Ottawa, ON – As Ottawa continues to endure bitter winter temperatures, homelessness and healthcare representatives have come together at the Ottawa Mission to express their support for Councillor Catherine McKenney’s motion tabled at Ottawa City Council in December to declare an emergency concerning the worsening situation regarding homelessness. This comes as the Ottawa Mission released a national public opinion poll by Nanos Research on public attitudes to homelessness across Canada.

See the poll results (PDF)

“The City of Ottawa prides itself on being a caring and compassionate city where people want to live, work and play. Safe, adequate and affordable homes are fundamental to this goal. Unfortunately, we’re moving further away from this vision. The situation concerning homelessness has moved beyond a crisis and we should call it what it is: an emergency which is putting people’s lives at risk,” stated Councillor McKenney, Special Liaison for Housing and Homelessness on Ottawa City Council. Councillor McKenney’s motion will be voted on by city council on January 29.

Ottawa Mission CEO Peter Tilley noted the worsening conditions for those needing help. “The city’s own review of its housing plan showed that instead of decreasing, shelter use increased by 6.5% and the waiting list for affordable housing by 14.8% in the last year alone. Shelters in this community are full and often operating at overcapacity. At the Mission, we’ve been operating at over 100% capacity for over 2 years, and it’s getting worse. We lay down 20 mats in our chapel each night to ensure that no one who needs help is turned away, but this is no solution in the longer term.”

Somerset West Community Health Centre Executive Director Naini Cloutier noted the harsh and harmful effects of homelessness on those experiencing it. “Safe, appropriate and affordable housing is key for promoting health and preventing illness. When very limited affordable housing options are available, people end up in poorer quality housing or homeless, which exposes them to additional health risks. Particularly concerning is the fact that 92 people in this city are estimated to have been sleeping outside this winter, and about 700 women were turned away from Violence Against Women shelters from April to December of 2019, often returning to unsafe circumstances,” Cloutier spoke on behalf of the Coalition of Community Health and Resource Centres, a network of 13 multi-service agencies.

Simone Thibault, Executive Director of Centretown Community Health Centre noted the disproportionate burden of homelessness on other very vulnerable populations. “Homelessness can affect anyone. In fact, according to the city’s own Point in Time Count, 9% of those who are homeless are in fact employed, a fact that illustrates just how limited affordable housing options are in Ottawa. However, in addition to women fleeing violence, the burden of homelessness is particularly acute for those who are the most vulnerable, including: refugee families; those who identify as Indigenous or LGBTQ; veterans and first responders afflicted with PTSD; and others.” Thibault spoke on behalf of the Alliance to End Homelessness Ottawa, a network of 55 housing and homelessness organizations.

Alexandra Apavaloae of Nanos Research presented the findings of a national public opinion poll that shows significant concern about homelessness across Canada as well as a strong desire to help. “Nearly 3 in 4 Canadians nationally indicated that homelessness has a serious or somewhat serious impact on Canada. Canadians are also very concerned about how homelessness affects those they care about: over six in ten said that they may be at some risk of being homeless. 50% of Canadians surveyed provide support to those who are homeless through donations, voting for those who have helped or promise to help those who are homeless, volunteering, and other methods.”

Ms. Apavaloae noted further that Canadians see governments as playing a crucial role in solving homelessness. “23% chose the federal government as the institution that should be the most responsible, while 18% each indicated that provincial and municipal governments should be the most responsible. 16% said that governments, family and friends, and religious and charitable institutions should be collectively responsible for homelessness.”

Mr. Tilley noted the real risk of the situation concerning homelessness if the situation continues to deteriorate further. “If the original goal of the City of Ottawa’s 10-year Plan was to reduce shelter use by 40%, then by now we should only have 5,150 people within our shelter system, working our way to 3,862 people by 2023. Instead, the total number is almost 8,000.  While governments at all levels have made strides under their individual plans and policies, these numbers show clearly that what we’re doing now is not enough. We cannot afford another course correction down the road: we need action now. And given the enormity and urgency of the situation, we need City Council to approve Councillor McKenney’s motion to support collective engagement with the federal and Ontario governments.”

“Ottawa has faced recent emergency situations as a result of weather calamities, including severe flooding and tornadoes which affected thousands of people. The current situation concerning homelessness in Ottawa is no different: it affects thousands of people, not only those who are homeless or at risk of being homeless, but also their families and the community at large through demands placed on public services such as social services, hospitals and police. Our community needs a response to homelessness that works, not only for those experiencing homelessness, but for all the people of Ottawa. Unless we work together across all levels of government, it will continue to get worse,” Councillor McKenney concluded.

About The Ottawa Mission

Since 1906, The Ottawa Mission has been serving the homeless, the hungry and the lost by providing food, clothing, shelter and hope. In 2018 – 2019, The Ottawa Mission provided emergency shelter to an average of 195 men every night and served an average of 1,358 meals every day. The Ottawa Mission also provides health services, mental health and  addiction treatment programs, hospice care, dental services, educational support, job training, spiritual care, and men’s clothing to thousands in need in our community.

Methodology:

Nanos conducted an RDD dual frame (land- and cell-lines) hybrid telephone and online random survey of 1,010 Canadians, 18 years of age or older, between November 29th and December 2nd, 2019 as part of an omnibus survey. Participants were randomly recruited by telephone using live agents and administered a survey online. The margin of error for this survey is ±3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20. The research was commissioned by the Ottawa Mission and was conducted by Nanos Research.

FOR INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:

Aileen Leo
Director of Communications
T 613.234.1144 x 305
C 613.712.3092
E-mail: aleo@ottawamission.com

Helping Those in Need this Christmas: The Ottawa Mission Serves Thousands in our Community

During the Ottawa Mission’s annual Christmas dinner, which was held on December 22, the shelter served thousands of meals to those in need in our community. In 2018 – 2019, The Mission served over 495,000 meals to shelter residents and members of the community at large. 

In addition to warm and nutritious food, the Christmas dinner provides a sense of shared community to those who may otherwise not only go hungry, but also find themselves alone. On the menu this Christmas was: 2500 lbs of oven roasted turkey; 30 pans of savory stuffing; 450 tourtiere pies; 750 lbs of mashed potatoes; 250 lbs of glazed baby carrots; 250 lbs of green beans almandine; 3000 cupcakes; 230 dozen rolls; 50 gallons of giblet gravy; and 100 vegetarian stuffed peppers.

According to Ottawa Public Health, one in 15 households in Ottawa is food insecure. Food insecurity contributes to poor mental health, and also serious chronic diseases such as diabetes and heart disease. Research also suggests that two-thirds or more of people who are homeless are food insecure. Ottawa has some of the highest rates of food bank use in our province. In fact, the home riding of the Mission, Ottawa-Vanier, has the highest food bank use in Ontario. 

“Hunger, as well as poverty and homelessness, are serious public health issues. We at the Ottawa Mission are doing our part to support the most vulnerable in our community by addressing food insecurity through our meal program. This year, we will serve well over half a million meals,” said Ottawa Mission Chief Executive Officer Peter Tilley.

“Our fabulous volunteers and also our exceptional kitchen staff worked very hard to ensure that everyone had a delicious turkey dinner. Our great frontline staff went the extra mile to ensure that all who entered our Mission could be accommodated. And our donors and supporters have been profoundly generous in their continuing support to the Mission. A huge thank you to all,” Tilley concluded.