When Bruce arrived at The Ottawa Mission in 2014, at over six feet tall he weighed just 140 pounds. His addiction had taken control of his life, and he felt that – after many years of struggling – he had reached the end of the road. What’s happened since then has awakened Bruce to a new life filled with sobriety, good health, and an abundance of hope. But it wasn’t easy…

Bruce tried to complete our Stabilization program – where men receive counselling and support before entering long-term treatment – no less than three times. After three unsuccessful attempts, he was amazed when he was offered a fourth opportunity. As Bruce says, “I was about ready to give up hope of ever getting sober – but the people at The Mission wouldn’t let me. They cared about me and believed in me, and I finally came to believe in myself.”

Bruce made it through Stabilization on his fourth attempt and then enrolled in our five month LifeHouse residential treatment program. He has since finished his time at LifeHouse, and is now living on his own. He still receives aftercare counselling at The Mission on a regular basis as he continues his recovery.

Most importantly for Bruce, he has reconnected with his entire family, and he is finding great joy in getting to know his 7 year old granddaughter and year old grandson.

For Bruce and so many others like him, the gift of hope is a powerful thing indeed.

Emile had his own restaurant when he lived in his native Haiti. When he moved to Canada a few years ago, he was unable to find work in his chosen profession because he lacked the right credentials. He worked at other jobs, as a school crossing guard and in security, but found himself needing social assistance for a time to supplement his income. Then he heard about The Ottawa Mission’s Food Services Training Program and applied right away. And so began Emile’s new journey of hope.

While taking the five-month program – which includes both theory classes and hands-on work in our large commercial kitchen – Emile picked up some new skills and knowledge, and a whole lot of motivation. As Emile says, “The Mission’s Chef Ric is a real inspiration to all the students in the Food Services program. He would often tell us to make sure that we loved what we were doing – that way we’d be cooking from the heart, and it would show in our results.”

Emile’s passion for cooking was rekindled during his time with us, and he has since gone on to a part-time job in the kitchen of a local retirement home, which he loves. He also still works part time in security, and is now able to fully support himself.

Emile plans to continue his culinary schooling at Algonquin College, and he is determined to achieve his ultimate goal of once again having his own restaurant. We know that with
enthusiasm like Emile’s anything is possible!

As I pulled into my parking spot beside The Ottawa Mission a few weeks ago, I was greeted, as I often am, by a few gentlemen out front of the building where we run our LifeHouse residential addiction treatment program.

One man named Lou came over to me and gave me a huge smile. “Notice anything different?” he asked. It suddenly struck me that Lou now had dentures filling a gap in his mouth where there were previously no teeth. He was so proud of his “new look”.

Lou had been connected with The Mission’s Dental Clinic while going through our treatment program. Through the support of you, our donors, and the volunteer dentists who keep our clinic running, he is now holding his head high, and smiling. Lou has also completed the LifeHouse program and is now at our second stage home in the community while he looks for a job and a new home. As Lou says, he’s now looking to the future with more hope than he’s had in years.

Hope, compassion and dignity are what The Mission strives to provide every day of the year. Having just developed our new Strategic Plan, our vision for the next three years is to implement several initiatives that will continue to improve our services. In fact, this month, The Ottawa Mission’s Diane Morrison Hospice will expand from 14 to 21 beds in order to help more men and women receive the care and compassion everyone deserves during their final days.Because of you, so many people are getting the care they need and hope for the future.
Thank you for caring, and helping change lives.

On one final note, I would like to acknowledge the tremendous 23–year contribution of Laird Eddy who is retiring as Executive Director of The Ottawa Mission Foundation. Along with his wife, Diane Morrison, Laird helped to build The Mission into a strong, vital and life-changing organization. We will be forever indebted to them for the legacy they leave behind.

Thank you.

By Paula McCooey, Ottawa Citizen August 17th, 2015

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Ottawa Mission adds seven hospice beds for homeless

Paula McCooey, Ottawa Citizen
Published on: August 17, 2015 | Last Updated: August 17, 2015 6:55 PM EDT

The Ottawa Mission is expanding its Diane Morrison Hospice to 21 beds from 14 to give more homeless people the support and dignity they need in their final days.

The extra seven beds inside the renovated space at 53 Daly Ave., next to the Mission on Waller Street, mean those with life-threatening illnesses will not have to suffer alone, Marg Smeaton, the Mission’s manager of health services, said Monday.

“We’re seeing our clients that are coming in that haven’t had any medical intervention, who don’t have anyone that is looking after them, who have really complicated medical needs,” said Smeaton, who says clients are in their 20s to their 80s. “And so when we bring them in, it’s often for longer period of time that they are with us — palliative but chronic palliative.”

The centre opened in 2001 and provides 24-hour care. Through a partnership with Ottawa Inner City Health, nurses, client-care workers and other health professionals offer patients physical, emotional and spiritual support at every stage.

The expansion is funded through the Ottawa Mission Foundation and Telus.

Smeaton said the need for growth is due in part because of a lack of affordable housing in the city. With hospitals taxed, the 14-bed centre was always at capacity.

“There are people that had high medical needs that had nowhere else to go,” she says. “I guess they could sit in a hospital ward, but that doesn’t provide somebody with dignity of life that they deserve at the end of their life.”

Compassion and understanding are necessary when treating patients who have lived most of their lives on the street, she said. As well, because patients have typically encountered other Mission services such as its shelter, its learning centre and its primary care service, the move to the hospice — as opposed to another facility — is less intimidating.

“They are already part of the community here, so it’s really easy to say, ‘If you need more care we can provide it,’ ” Smeaton said.

By Alex Robinson, Ottawa East News April 17th, 2015

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By Sebastien Burke, Orleans Star April 7th, 2015

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Ottawa Mission feeds the hungry on Easter

Published on April 07, 2015
By Sebastien Burke, Contributor

It took two weeks and 120 volunteers to transform the dining hall and prepare the food for this event. Attendants were treated to roast beef, baked potatoes, beans, Yorkshire pudding, carrots and lemon meringue pie.

Peter Tilley, Executive Director of the Ottawa Mission, stressed the importance of the event stating, “we get accustomed to holidays meaning something, and a lot of people coming out today have lost that in some way.”

“For us to give that to them, even just for a day, it’s the least we can do.” One way the Mission made the event special for the guests was opting for a restaurant style service instead of the traditional line ups. The effort does not go unnoticed by the guests.

Joseph Macdonald, one of those in attendance, said that he enjoys attending special occasions like Easter because of the positive energy in the room.

“You don’t see this every day, it’s a really happy moment,” said Macdonald, “Everyone’s smiling ear-to-ear and having a good time, it’s also a very nice meal.”

This Easter dinner is just one of the many things the Ottawa Mission does to help the homeless.

Since 1906, the Ottawa Mission has also provided essential items (like clothing and toiletries), medical treatment and job training.

The Ottawa Mission was very busy in 2014, serving on average 1297 meals a day. They also sheltered 1782 individuals with an average stay time of 51 days.

The Ottawa Mission is looking for donations of any kind. Those seeking to help can donate their time, money or essential items. For more information, go to https://ottawamission.com/

This week is National Volunteer Week – a time to recognize, celebrate and thank Canada’s 13.3 million volunteers. Here at The Ottawa Mission, we simply could not help as many people in need without the dedicated support of our compassionate army of volunteers. Each week we are able to fill an amazing 250 volunteer shifts at the shelter. From preparing and serving meals to organizing clothing donations and helping out at our learning centre, our volunteers do so much to help people in need.

The husband and wife team of Mark and Holly Patterson are two shining examples. Mark and Holly have been volunteering with us since 2007. At each holiday meal they are front and centre. Mark greets and shakes the hand of every person who walks in the door, while Holly expertly works the tables and shows people to their seats. With an average of 2500 meals served in a 5-1/2 hour timeframe at these special dinners, Mark and Holly are kept very busy.

But their contribution to these dinners is much more than keeping things moving along smoothly. They believe that those who come to these dinners are our invited guests and they all deserve to be warmly welcomed, treated with respect, and made to feel special. From the happiness and fellowship felt throughout the dining room, Mark and Holly are truly adding their own wonderful magic to these events.

Thank you Mark and Holly, and everyone else who is part of our special “army”, for all that you do.

This past year has been rough for Gisele, her husband and their two children as circumstances forced them to turn to social services for help. But she was determined to turn things around and make a brighter future for her family. While speaking with someone at Ontario Works, Gisele learned about an opportunity to get some firsthand training in the food services industry at The Ottawa Mission.

Like most women, Gisele says she learned some cooking basics from her mother while growing up in Haiti and enjoyed making meals for her family. She felt working in a kitchen would be something she would enjoy – and she was right! Just a few short weeks ago, Gisele graduated from The Ottawa Mission’s 5-month Food Services Training Program, and she now has a full blown passion for cooking. She credits the kitchen team at The Ottawa Mission for her success. “They were welcoming, patient and very supportive of my circumstances”, she says.

Today Gisele is working in the kitchen of a local community college. She would like to eventually write her Red Seal exam to become a chef and her dream is to one day open her own family-run restaurant. As she says, “This is what I’m going to do for the rest of my life – I love it!”

So, 2015 is already shaping up to be a great year for Gisele, and she is so grateful to The Mission and its supporters for the wonderful second chance that the Food Services Training Program has provided for her and her family. Continued good luck, Gisele!

Dr.Tom Harle has been a dentist in Ottawa for many years and along with his private practise he has also committed a considerable amount of his professional life to voluntarily providing dental services to impoverished people in Canada and abroad.

Motivated by his faith in 2006, Dr. Harle initiated a volunteer-driven Dental Clinic at The Ottawa Mission that focuses on improving the dental health of Ottawa’s homeless community and those living in local shelters suffering from mental illness, poverty and substance abuse. Since then, Dr.Harle has recruited many local Dentists, Dental Hygienists and Dental Assistants to volunteer in the clinic.

We extend our congratulations to Dr.Harle for his appointment  to the Order of Canada in December 2014, one of our country’s highest civilian awards. The award has been given in recognition Dr. Harle’s dental career in global and local community social engagement and philanthropy which seeks to help improve access to dental care for the disadvantaged and underserved.

On October 20, Chefs from around the city come into The Ottawa Mission kitchen to take part in an event to mark International Chef’s Day.

They hold short workshops for the men and women in the Mission’s Food Services Training Program as well as contribute to the preparations of a special meal for residents of the shelter.

A huge thank you to the Ottawa Chapter of the Canadian Culinary Federation who plays a big part in organizing this special event.