HEALTH & WELLNESS Reena Offers a Community a Place to Belong

Reena Offers a Community

a Place to Belong

PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF REENA’S PLACE

New state-of-the-art residence for people who live with development disabilities, mental health challenges and physical disabilities.

Greena is Reena’s newest environmentally-aware program that sees residents producing their own fruits and vegetables at the Reena Community Farm.

ulia Slater, 24, is very excited about moving into her new home. “I have plans,” she says. “I have things that I want to do there.” That home is in the newly-built Lou Fruitman Reena Residence in Vaughan. Julia is one of 138 residents who will move into this state-of-the-art facility through Reena, a non-profit organization that works with people who live with development disabilities like autism, mental health challenges and physical disabilities. Reena was created in 1973 when a group of parents looked for an alternative to institutions for family members with special needs. Within several years, Reena began to receive provincial funding and the Reena Foundation was established. The Toby and Henry

JBattle Developmental Centre, Reena’s first stand-alone facility, opened its doors in 1999 and offered day and evening programs for children and adults with developmental disabilities, offering a health and wellness centre, sports centre, creative arts workshop, computer lab, greenhouse and library. Since those early days, says Sheila Lampert, Executive Director at Reena Foundation, the organization has grown to over 700 employees with an annual operating budget of $55 million and has never waned in their commitment to promote dignity, individuality, independence, and personal growth among their individuals. Working with valued community partners, Reena has continued to offer programming to thousands of people in the areas of supported employment and community participation.

Reena residents are given the opportunity to participate in art programs, among many others.

The Lou Fruitman Reena Residence in Vaughan opened its doors in August 2021. Planning for the next building project in Toronto is underway. They have also provided care for over 30 group homes and 127 supported independent living apartments with partners such as Meals on Wheels, Circle of Care and March of Dimes.

“Inclusion through building community is one of Reena’s core values,” says Bryan Keshen, CEO at Reena, “and to that end, housing is critical. Currently the wait time for housing for people with severe needs in the GTA is over 40 years; there are simply more people coming into need than there are resources.”

Keshen says the Lou Fruitman Reena Residence, made possible by a lead donation by the Lou Fruitman family as well as many other generous private donations and government assistance, represents a radical change for families who will know that their loved ones will be safe and cared for. Help will be available 24-7 if it is required, and tenants can live in the building and still work with the agencies supporting them; and more housing is to come.

While in the preliminary stages of its next project in Toronto, Reena will be rebuilding on the site of two group homes currently operating on Elm Ridge Drive with the plan for 100 self-contained apartment units to house 150 individuals, together with programming and administration spaces.

“Inclusion is also critical because it is a pathway to belonging,” says Keshen. “When we belong somewhere we feel comfortable and cared for, and know that others want us to be part of their lives. The beauty of this kind of housing is that it is in the heart of community - you have access to libraries, to community centres, to synagogues and churches. You are part of a community, not separate from it.”

For Julia, that community is truly what makes the residence home, and her list of plans is long.

“I will be teaching dance,” she says, “because I have been dancing since I was five years old and there is a special room downstairs where I will be able to do that. I will also be working in the garden because there is a big garden outside where we can plant things. Plus, I will have my friend living close to me and that makes me so happy.”

reenafoundation.org slampert@reenafoundation.org