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Community Organizations
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Krista Mergel, Program Manager
Education is a key that can open the door to many opportunities. Learned knowledge and skills help to create better societies, reduce crime rates and poverty, and increase jobs and economic growth. Youth who have experienced housing insecurity and poverty have not been given the chance to have a focused, fun, and educational experience. At Safe Haven Foundation, we operate on a philosophy of effectively creating transformational change. We feel the pressing need to ensure Calgary’s most vulnerable youth experience barrier-free and continuous access to education throughout their youth. It starts with each individual homeless or at-risk youth that we serve. Our goal for all of them is to end their experience of homelessness forever and allow them a pathway to adulthood self-sufficiency. The educational dreams of the youth at Safe Haven Foundation are front and centre in all we do. We know that there is nothing these youth cannot accomplish if we allow them the ability to dream.
In 2020, we welcomed J. into Haven’s Way®. A newcomer to Canada, with many chapters of her life lived in fear, this young woman needed a safe space to begin to heal and grow. One that did not have a time limit on her stay and a revolving door of other in need strangers. She deserved a place to truly call home
and to live in an age-appropriate environment that was conducive to the transition to adulthood ahead of her. Since walking through our doors, she has seized every opportunity. When J. left Cameroon in 2017 at the age of 16, she thought the abuse, poverty, and hardship were behind her. Sadly, the family she lived with in Canada put her to work as a maid and childcare provider without paying her or making education easily accessible. She had left one abusive man in Africa only to be stuck inside the home of another. And while she had left one bad situation for another, there was a light inside this young woman; a bright hope that has kept shining even in the darkness of her life circumstances. After fleeing this situation, J. lived in two different homeless shelters before finding Haven’s Way. When we first met her, she confessed to her love of the color pink and was excited to have her own room. We ensured that her new bed had pink blankets and that it was the warm, welcoming environment that would become the place for her to feel safe and call home. The joy that J. has brought to Haven’s Way cannot be measured. Her light continues to shine bright and is often what helps others find their way. When J. told us that her dream was to become a Social Worker, so that she could help children escape the type of violence she has experienced, we knew her heart was guiding her. After successfully graduating high school, she enrolled in the Bow Valley College Social Worker Diploma Program. She was awarded the Bissett Bursary and the Soroptimist International of Calgary Dare to Dream Award in 2021 and is excelling in her post-secondary education. J. has maintained part-time employment for over two years and seizes the opportunities that Haven’s Way gives her to save her earnings. J. is kind and motivated, she works hard, never gives up and recently even purchased her own car! Post-secondary education can be especially intimidating for an ESL student, however, because J. feels safe at Haven’s Way, she reaches out for emotional support when she needs it. The support J. received in these teenage years has allowed her to thrive and she has wonderful relationships with her roommates and the staff at Safe Haven Foundation. She accesses the counselling provided for her by the program, and attends all the fun, recreational activities saying, “One of the best things about Haven’s Way is the people around me and how we get out to do fun things!”. Through giving J. the safety of a home, food, healthy relationships, and resources to connect to healing and education, we have seen her loneliness and pain lessen. We watch as she has discovered new interests like her love for horses. Seeing her experience things like river rafting and hikes in the mountains for the very first time has brought so much joy to the staff team at Haven’s Way. We have been witnessing the peer support and love she offers other youth at the program, and we have been absolutely honored to be a part of her journey! She is preparing to move out into the community and rent her very own place. This is a big step that she has put a lot of thought and planning into. Moving into market rental housing will create the need for J. to continue working as much as possible while going to school. Her moving day will be sad for us, and she will be greatly missed, but seeing her fly without the weight of past abuse, with new knowledge and empowerment, and with the whole world in front of her is a great privilege. It is the true WHY of the work we do at Safe Haven Foundation. It is in these moments that the youth we support show the strength and independence that we are striving for. When we see the great success
from youth like J., we know we need to keep striving to support more youth in need. Safe Haven Foundation is helping to address this need with our newest initiative Haven’s Harbour. Scheduled to open in Fall 2022, Haven’s Harbour will provide housing with supports to nine additional youth in our community who want to continue post-secondary education and need low-income housing. The overall goal is to create space and time for them to focus on education while being in a supportive environment where they can grow and reach their goals at the own individual pace. The youth will come to Haven’s Harbour through Haven’s Way and other like-minded programs and will be at a stage where they can safely live independently. Youth will be able to practice the life skills learned while being provided with a much-needed safety net of affordable housing and be supported to reach their educational and personal goals. We truly believe that giving these young people a chance to complete post-secondary education will provide long term stability, fulfilling our mission of ending their experience of homelessness forever.
In the words of J., “I want to prove to the people in my past that thought I was not smart enough to succeed, that they were wrong. I want to prove that I can help other kids who are going through similar abuses that I went through. So many youth commit suicide when they can't deal with what's going on in their lives. I want to help those kids to know that they can do this and they are strong and valued, and in the end it will be so worth it.”
What is Skipping Stone?
Skipping Stone Foundation is a community-focused charitable organization that
connects trans and gender diverse youth, adults, and families with comprehensive and low barrier access to the support they need and deserve. Through peer support, system navigation services, community advocacy and education, Skipping Stone works to dismantle and replace the barriers, stigma and discrimination trans and gender diverse individuals in Alberta face with positivity, affirmation and support.
Why was it created?
Skipping Stone was founded in 2016 by Lindsay Peace and Amelia Marie Newbert, who were impacted by having to navigate barriers in various systems and wanted to give back to the community. They started with fundraising for a yearly scholarship and community building events to celebrate resiliency among trans youth and, almost immediately, noticed the significant gaps in support for youth and families. The organization rapidly grew to act as a systems and services navigator grounded in peer support and offers a broad range of services, including peer support groups and mentorship, healthcare and ID change navigation, youth programming, therapy groups, voice classes and expressions days, and gender affirming gear.
How can people access your services?
Those wanting to get connected with Skipping Stone services can complete an intake form on our website (https://www.skippingstone.ca/intake) and a staff member will be in touch to schedule a time to meet. First meetings can be done in-person at the Skipping Stone office in Calgary, or by phone or video call and are a chance to learn more about the agency, for us to get to know each other and to start connecting you with the supports and services you are interested in. Skipping Stone's peer support groups are run online on a drop-in basis, so individuals don't have to wait to have an intake before joining.
How can the community support you?
There are many ways to get involved! Financial donations to Skipping Stone go directly to supporting trans folks to access life-saving support and services. Skipping Stone also accepts gently-used clothing and gender gear, new cosmetics, non-perishable food, toiletries, and school supplies to pass along to community members who might not otherwise have access to or receive such gifts and necessities. Community members can also get involved as volunteers and various service providers can attend training with us and join our Trans Affirming Network as we seek to increase the number of local businesses committed to creating welcoming and inclusive spaces.
