Well, the Olympic sprint is over - it seemed to come and go so quickly after such a long build-up. There was much to both celebrate and wonder about (whether you were in either the pro or anti camp), though not all was as predicted: downtown Vancouver did not grind to a gridlocked halt, and Fox News correspondents weren’t camped on every corner in the DTES. Of course, the overall costs and benefits will be analyzed and debated for a long time to come. What I do know for sure is that the not-for-profit sector has returned all too quickly to our own long-distance, endurance event. We’re entering a new financial year where public finances and individual agency budgets are as tight as ever (those of us who receive health funding have, in particular, faced some extremely hard decisions). Around us is the ongoing swirl of plans, initiatives, reorganizations, media stories, development processes, and politics that make working in the field so rewarding and yet often so frustrating all at the same time. It doesn’t stop for anyone. At St. James we’re trying to stay as focussed as we can on our key goals: sticking closely to services and populations of expertise; strengthening service delivery and practice; and investing time and energy in improving organizational capacity. These strands have come together in our housing portfolio to good effect. We’ve worked with partners to transition out of some projects (direct SRO ownership, forensic housing), focussing more on women and children and an older, aging-in-place population with more complex care needs. We’ve restructured programs to create increased practice leadership capacity (at the same dollar cost), while at the same time centralizing and reorienting operational and corporate support services. This has helped us move forward in a positive way. For instance, in November we opened 26 permanent new emergency housing (shelter) beds for women in the DTES. In less than two months we were able to harness the energy of private donors, contractors, and program staff (with BC Housing support) to convert an empty warehouse into a welcoming new facility. St. James has a lot more development to undertake both internally and with our fellow not-for-profit partners in the community. However, we’re staying with the pace, and are better prepared for that inevitable next sprint - something we all need to achieve, individually and collectively. St. James Community Service Society is a multi-service health and social care provider in Vancouver. Details of our new women’s shelter, and our current strategic plan, are available on our website at www.sjcss.com. |
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Forty non-profit organizations that work in the Downtown Eastside participated in Downtown Eastside Connect. This public information centre was open during February and welcomed visitors from Vancouver and around the world including international media from the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and the LA Times. Journalists from Switzerland, Japan, Germany, Finland, Brazil, the Czech Republic, and France also stopped by and most were connected to non-profit groups to assist with stories. Click here to read the full article. |
Vancouver’s Community Non-Profit Partners
Sixteen of the city’s most experienced and respected non-profit groups work to deliver housing, shelter and support services to those in greatest need. For a contact list of the partners that operate the SROs, deliver the Homeless Outreach Program, and/or provide emergency shelter in Vancouver, click here.
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We have redesigned our newsletter as well as our website; we hope you like the new look. Vancouver Housing Update is an e-newsletter collaboration between the Vancouver Community Non-Profit Partners that work with BC Housing on breaking the cycle of homelessness. These community partners operate the Single Room Occupancy Hotels (SROs) owned by the provincial government, deliver the Homeless Outreach Program, and/or provide emergency shelter in Vancouver. The purpose of the e-newsletter is to provide accurate and timely information to tenants, advocacy and community groups, and anyone else who wants to be kept up to date on what is happening on the housing front for people in Vancouver who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. |
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