Annual donation letter, published December 2024
Dear Friends,
This past year has been a year of movement and renewal.
The structural steel beams creating a third floor for the 44 new housing units at 97 Victoria symbolizes the energy throughout The Working Centre, directed towards building and shifting spaces that make a difference in people’s lives.
The Working Centre is now offering 150 beds as 24/7 emergency shelter. This has come together through an effort of sheer will to support those who do not have a home, who are left to fend for themselves on the streets.
King Street Shelter provides 100 beds in a congregate shelter with three sleeping areas, a central community gathering area and a 24 hour servery. 268 different people used the shelter last year. During the year we prioritized women without shelter and presently the shelter has 60 women and 40 men.
Erbs Road Shelter is a new kind of shelter with 50 cabins. Last year 110 different people stayed at the shelter with 19 people securing supportive or private housing. Each month residents are supported with over 1500 supports towards stabilizing and gaining housing.
St. John’s Kitchen has been located at St. John’s Anglican Church at Duke and Water since November 2023 while the Making Home building project progresses. The Kitchen is a primary place providing access to meals, showers, laundry, public washrooms, outreach and medical supports. St. John’s Kitchen sees 400 people per day. We estimate that there are 2,000+ different people who are unhoused or precariously housed who use St. John’s Kitchen. The reality of addictions, mental health, poverty and homelessness is starkly present each day. Over the last 18 months, we have seen 80 people connected to the St. John’s Kitchen community who have died.
Over the pandemic, we built a commissary kitchen on Queen Street which each day produces over 700 meals that are served at St. John’s Kitchen and the shelters.
Outreach supports for those facing homelessness are crucial. Our outreach teams work closely with over 600 people living precariously. We can name over 300 people living outside or couch surfing. Everyday our outreach workers are supporting people in encampments, motels and precarious living situations, helping with access to housing, medical, mental health, addiction supports, and legal issues. Specialized Outreach Services, our concurrent mental health and addictions team, supports 960 people.
Adding housing is an integral part of our work. Last year we completed the Queen Street Apartments, creating 21 loft units for new Canadian single parents. The Water Street Hospitality House provides support to those acutely ill and homeless. Through generous donors we were able to purchase a 12 person rooming house that has already provided rooms for our community. The Louisa House is providing needed transitional rooms for refugees.
The Job Search Resource Centre at 58 Queen Street South has been serving those looking for work for 39 years. This fall we revitalized the resource centre changing its look substantially for the first time in 25 years. This was necessary to adjust to its growing use. Last year, 5,000 different people were supported, with 40-50 new people a day, many urgently seeking enough income to pay for high housing rents.
Your donations help us support people with creative projects that respond to growing poverty and housing instability. Supporters of The Working Centre have proven, year after year, that community donations are vital to respond to local issues. We are grateful for your ongoing support in building our community of support.
Sincerely,
Joe Mancini, Director
P.S. We share our quarterly newspaper Good Work News with our contributors. Learn more about our community-based initiatives by visiting our website at www.theworkingcentre.org
