Reflections on 25 years of Working Centre activity on Queen Street
By Arleen Macpherson
Published in May 2007
Have you been down on Queen Street South in Kitchener lately? There is a virtual many-faceted gem in the heart of downtown. Three buildings near the corner of Queen and Charles Streets and another at Victoria and Weber Streets house the projects of The Working Centre that serve hundreds of people in Waterloo Region and beyond in a variety of creative ways.
When I first joined The Working Centre in 1988, its two projects were St. John’s Kitchen, located in the Anglican Church gym at Duke and Water Streets, and Employment Counselling Services in the basement and two floors of a rented building at 58 Queen Street South. There were five people employed at the kitchen and six at The Working Centre. This was a fledgling operation dedicated to the well-being of marginalized and unemployed people that depended heavily on volunteer helpers and financial support from the larger community.
It is so much fun now, a mere twenty years later, to survey the present day grown-up Working Centre, its expanded programs and buildings and the new St. John’s Kitchen, a permanent home customized to serve the needs and pleasures of its patrons and workers.
It is well worth a visit to the downtown to see the transformation of four of Kitchener’s historic old buildings at 43, 58 and 66 Queen Street South and at 97 Victoria Street North. They are treasures in the downtown and a monument to the imagination, skills and labour of countless paid and unpaid workers, as well as to the support given by the larger community.
I am a self-appointed, enthusiastic tour guide of these very exciting new places. I am also keenly inspired by the vital, creative projects which give life to the buildings and, especially, by the many people whose vision, skills, dedication and hope make it all such a lovely place, a lively place, a people place, a human place.
I usually start a tour at Queen’s Greens further down Queen Street. This 10 year old garden, a former parking lot, is a joint project of The Working Centre and the City of Kitchener, located across from the Joseph Schneider Haus and a trail leading into Victoria Park. The one-quarter acre garden is the work of volunteers who prepared the ground for planting and divided it into twenty 12’ x 4’ plots available for $10 yearly to anyone wishing to grow organic vegetables or flowers for their own use. A garden shed occupies one corner and water is available from an attractive storage tank with the garden’s logo painted on it. Located near the centre of the garden is an open wood-burning brick oven for the baking of bread and pizza sponsored by the well-known Ace Bakery. All of this is framed by a low white picket fence, enhanced by colourful perennial flowers, making it an interesting and attractive sight for travellers along Queen Street.
Our tour now moves closer to King Street, to the Queen Street Commons. The three storey building at 43 Queen Street South provides transitional, shared affordable housing for six people, as well as room for Recycle Cycles, Barter Works, a group meeting space, a library of books, shelves adorned with local hand-crafted sale articles, a gallery wall for local art and a bright friendly café. The café, open daily, is where soups, desserts and delicious vegetarian entrees made of locally grown organic food are offered by staff and volunteers. Many groups meet here to share conversation, music, learn English, or plan projects. I hosted my bridge club here one recent afternoon. The beautiful refinished wooden floor, the eclectic colours, the reclaimed artifacts, the comfortable furniture, the cosy round café tables, the delectable food and the friendly people will entice you back again and again.
Refreshed and suitably fortified, we can now walk across the street to 58 Queen Street South. This is the original rented Working Centre building that opened its storefront operation in 1982 to serve and to offer practical help to unemployed people. The recession in Ontario at that time and the consequent spike in unemployment numbers brought many people through the front doors.
There they would meet Joe and Stephanie Mancini, who started The Working Centre as recent graduates of St. Jeromes College at the University of Waterloo and the first recipients of the Father Norm Choate Award for outstanding community service.
Joe and Stephanie envisioned a grass roots community place and service that would honour and respect the inherent dignity of each person while at the same time offering them practical tools in their search for work and meaningful living. They encouraged people to recognise and value their own skills, to approach their tasks in a step by step way and to rejoice in progress achieved little by little. They were supported by like-minded people locally and influenced by earlier writers and activists who worked at the grass roots level. Chief among these were Dorothy Day and Peter Maurin, founders of the Catholic Worker Houses. The Canadian Catholic bishops’ statement Unemployment: The Human Costs issued in 1980 offered a model for their work. This document emphasized the dignity and worth of the worker. These ideals, while not so tangible as wood, bricks and mortar, are nonetheless possibly the most important and distinguishing features, attributes and gifts of The Working Centre to the larger community. That The Working Centre is truly a grass roots movement is evidenced by the original, ongoing and lively exchange of ideas among many people committed to a fair, just and inclusive society and by growing support throughout the Region.
Returning though to bricks and mortar at 58 Queen Street South, we encounter open spaces, accessible desks and chairs, computers, telephones, copy machines and all the tools needed for a job or housing search. The teaching, support and information needed to maximize their effectiveness are available from many helpers. Joe’s doorless office is in this building on the third floor where this newspaper, The Good Work News, is published and mailed out to 10,000 readers and donors. This is also the venue for sociology courses taught for credit by board member Ken Westhues of the University of Waterloo. The Waterloo School for Community Development exists here as well. It currently offers an eight-month diploma Course in Local Democracy guided jointly by Ken and Joe Mancini that includes local and national speakers. Fifteen students received their diplomas last year and another fifteen are enrolled this year.
The Mennonite Coalition for Refugee support has its office in the basement alongside a sewing and craft project which has thrived since 1992 thanks to the skill and dedication of many volunteers. The very top floor includes two large, bright affordable apartments, the first assisted housing offered by The Working Centre in 1995. This building was the very first one bought by The Working Centre and restored by paid and unpaid workers. It was an exciting time that established the permanence of The Working Centre in downtown Kitchener.
A sister building at 66 Queen Street South became available in 2003 and now opens into the original building. Open offices for job counsellors and their clients occupy the main floor. Particularly noteworthy are the original, newly painted double doors opening onto Queen Street and the use of original brick and wood panelling that constitute the walls. Overlooking the main floor is a mezzanine where Stephanie and others have their offices. A long hallway takes us to a modern industrial kitchen where all the food for the café is prepared and which provides training for future chefs and restaurant workers. Maurita’s Kitchen, as it is called, is named for a former long-time board member Maurita McCrystal whose support and passion for The Working Centre were alive right up until her untimely death three years ago. Maurita would have relished the delicious and nutritious offerings prepared by many willing hands.
A very busy computer refurbishing and recycling project operates in the basement while affordable apartments for single people and families in transition are located on the top floor.
We leave Queen Street now for a short walk over to 97 Victoria Street North. This old industrial building has been occupied until recently by the St. Vincent de Paul Society. Mutual interest brought them into partnership with The Working Centre and a complete renovation has resulted in Worth a Second Look, a very attractive store in which to browse and shop for bargains in household goods and furnishings. A particularly exciting addition to the store is a bright corner for a good selection of used books. This is the pet project of another board member, Roman Dubinski, who in retirement continues to offer his knowledge and skills as an English professor. Sharing this space is a project called the Job Café where part time work for those seeking to augment their incomes can be found. Laundry facilities, and showers are available to provide integrated support throughout the building.
But that’s not all! Ascending stairs to the second floor, we enter the most modern and efficient community kitchen you are likely to find anywhere. This is the new St John’s Kitchen, welcoming people in need for breakfast and/or a nutritious daily meal and a chance to socialize with others.
Two innovative collaborative programs reach out from St John’s Kitchen to people on the street. They include the Downtown Street Outreach Program supported by the Kitchener Downtown Business Association and the Psychiatric Outreach Program supported by the Region of Waterloo and The Hallman Foundation. These programs are a resource and a source of support for those with many needs.
This virtual tour of The Working Centre would not be complete without brief mention of two projects far away in India and Kenya. Geeta Vaidyanathan, an architect doing graduate studies at The University of Waterloo, volunteered at The Working Centre. She lent her expertise to the planning and designing of the renovations and came to appreciate The Working Centre’s philosophy, ideas for development and its grass roots, inclusive style of working. It was here at The Working Centre that an idea to benefit her home country took shape and began to grow. Eventually Geeta and her engineer husband returned to Orrisa, India. They designed and were able to secure funding to create a biodiesel pump project using locally available resources to provide running water and electricity to the village. Joe and Stephanie are part of an informal international board of directors for the project.
Similarly, an initial visit to The Working Centre by the director of the Ugunja Community Resource Centre has resulted in a student exchange program. Four Kenyans have gained experience here, while four young people from The Working Centre have volunteered in Kenya. Incidentally, a collection taken up at St John’s Kitchen was given to the first Kenyan, Charles, as a going away present to sponsor the purchase of a cow for his village.
Today fifty-five full and part-time staff and over 300 precious volunteers support over twenty-five Working Centre projects and provide a very hospitable community space. Come and see!
Arleen Macpherson is a Working Centre Board Member and was Coordinator of St. John’s Kitchen from 1988-1999.
