It ’ s been an intense summer on Pandora with signi f icant challenge s and di ff icult e vent s , bu t with the likelihood of all street camping ending by winter, with the unhoused on Pandora moving into shelter and housing, I m feeling more optimistic than I have for years .
For a ver y long time , we have re fused to accept that a tent on a sidewalk is any place to re side. It is one of the reasons why we called for ac tion from tho se who have the means to provide the shelter, housing, mental health and addic tion suppor t s that folk need to succe s sfull y get off Pandora
And the y have been listening And, more impor tantl y, ac ting
We have been working clo sel y and collaborativel y with the Cit y of Vic toria, Vic toria Police , Island Health, BC Housing Ministr y of Housing and other ser vice providers to implement long-term, sustainable solu tions to street homele s sne s s in Vic toria
The f irst step has been the opening of 40 new shelter beds in our existing locations to provide immediate care to tho se sleeping in our park s and on our sidewalk s .
Bu t make no mistake , we see this as just that , a f irst step.
We won t stop working together and advocating until e ver ybod y has a safe place inside where the y can re gain their dignit y health and connec tion to li fe -transforming suppor t s .
We envision a day when multiple avenue s of suppor t are in place : sober housing for people coming ou t of recover y and treatment ; women ’s-onl y housing for safet y and healing; pet-friendl y housing; and, ye s , additional emergenc y shelter for tho se who need a re spite from the element s and want to star t their journe y to permanent housing
Our Place s staff and volunteers have ne ver worked harder to make the dail y sur vival of our famil y members a top priorit y, and it ’ s their compas sion that spurs us on to f ight for solu tions And I want to emphasize , we do belie ve there are solu tions
Be fore the end of the year, our hard work will pay off as we open our f irst , long-term Therapeu tic Recover y Communit y for Women. The demolition stage is complete , and the building of this healing communit y has be gun Based on our succe s sful men ’ s program, New Roads , where 110 individuals received treatment in the last year alone , the women ’ s communit y will be completel y sel f-contained to be st ser ve our re sident s in their journe y ou t of addic tion.
Ac tion. Healing. Re sult s .
None of this would be po s sible withou t your suppor t . Thank you!
With much gratitude
Julian Daly
Chie f E xecu tive O ff icer
Our Place Soc iet y
Much-needed Recovery Community for Women Under Construction
Recover y from addiction is essential to Our Place s mission Alongside the Our Place Communit y Centre and additional housing sites, Our Place operates the New Roads Therapeutic Recover y Communit y for men with acute and chronic substance use issues. New Roads is a critical par t of Our Place’s strategy to suppor t people moving off Pandora avenue and towards permanent housing and reintegration into our communit y
The 9-to-24-month program at New Roads boasts a success rate more than double the commonly implemented 30-, 60-, and 90-day addiction recover y programs frequently offered New Roads provides individual and group counselling, medical monitoring with physician and nurse access as needed, and a variet y of structured additional programs Focusing on the whole person, additional programming includes employment skill building, future housing and social suppor t , creative outlets such as painting, physical activit y, gardening, and cooking.
Currently, no programs with this capacit y and suppor t exist on Vancouver Island for women To receive a long-term bed, women have to make the difficult choice to leave children, family and friends behind and travel to the mainland for the duration of any available program The majorit y of these programs have a price tag of more than $30,000 per month Following their treatment , positive outcomes can quickly diminish as the healthy suppor t systems they have built are disconnected from the home they return to on Vancouver Island
Women already face heightened vulnerabilit y and bear a dispropor tionate burden of gender-based violence, intimate par tner violence, and exploitation Female family members often act as the primar y caregivers and, without a place to find recover y, addiction and substance abuse disorders can ripple through generations.
This year, Our Place will open the first long-term women ’ s recover y communit y on Vancouver Island with the same life -transforming programs currently producing out standing success rates in the men ’ s facilit y
Construction is well under way, and we can ’ t wait to welcome the first resident s in the coming months!
Learn more about New Roads at newroads ourplacesociet y.com
Where does addiction recovery fit into Our Place Society’s programs?
Our Place does not provide just one solution to pe ople experiencing homelessness, addiction, and other barriers to health and wellness . The path to permanent housing and re cover y isn’ t the same for ever yone and re quires many personalize d steps . This star ts with the de cades of trust Our Place has built with the local communit y.
It usually star ts with a meal, a listening ear, or somewhere to rest for the night . From there , residents of New Roads often come straight from the stre et into treatment
Director o f New Roads Therapeutic Recover y C ommunit y, Cher yl Diebel
New Roads Therapy D og , Jango
Solutions to Homelessness That Work.
Afew months ago, the Our Place communit y centre was treated to a meal where the usual fare of oatmeal was upgraded to nu tritious and delic ious scrambled e ggs , fruit , sausage s , and crois sant s . This spec ial meal was thank s to the sponsorship of a local man, and whene ver this happens the donor has the oppor tunit y to ser ve the meal alongside the Our Place team. For this meal, that donor was someone who knew all too well the impor tance of the meal the y were ser ving
Se veral years ago, L loyd Hardman was using Our Place ser vice s re gularl y to get by L loyd live s with an au toimmune disease , Crohn’s Disease. Be fore f inding Our Place , the disease had ravaged his bod y, he had undergone t welve surgerie s , dealt with medication side e ffec t s , and the stre s s of navigating a struggling healthcare s y stem withou t suppor t He wasn ’ t able to work and had completel y exhausted his savings and re source s .
After the pas sing of his mother, he de scribe s li fe as “[beating] me down” until he was at his lowe st He was living in his car, the last as set he had from a thriving career in the tech industr y, when he found Our Place. A s it doe s for so many Our Place Famil y Members , it star ted with a meal
“ They just sor t of opened the door and kept things moving for me ”
What followed was a haircu t , hot showers , one -on-one suppor t from Our Place ou treach staff to navigate health and soc ial ser vice s spec i f ic to his situation, and drop -in programs like tax clinic s and communit y gatherings . In L loyd s case it was onl y a shor t time be fore he was stable enough to f ind work as a food deliver y app driver
“It helped me to get my bod y back up K nowing I can get a hot meal at Our Place , swoop in, grab a hot meal, get back on the road, back to work . ”
All the se years later, L loyd came back to Our Place. This time , his li fe and career are reinvigorated and he ’ s able to provide the kind of hope and relie f that he received at the Our Place Communit y Centre. It s such a hear t warming sight as he ser ve s alongside Our Place volunteers and spends time with Famil y Members who are navigating the tough situation he was once in himsel f
Bu t , it isn’ t just an ex ample of a bright fu ture that L loyd provide s to tho se he is ser ving. It is the empathy and understanding that so many people don t receive when the y ’ re struggling
“ There were a couple moment s during my meal ser vice where I got a little over whelmed. I star ted thinking […] abou t how much pain and suffering you ’ re going through during that time.”
It is with this sense of empathy and unconditional love that Our Place greet s e ver y person who come s through the doors Thank s to the many people like L loyd who have bene f ited from Our Place s programs , we know it work s .
“ The re source s of Our Place and the me s sage of hope and belonging and acceptance I took it to hear t It s such a pleasure to give back and be in a po sition to do so ”
Our fellow citizens need suppor t right now Help stock the Our Place communit y centre before the winter cold hits .
Your gi ft ensure s e ver yone can acce s s the food, shelter, hygiene , medical care , and oneon-one suppor t that Our Place can provide.
Our Place is de eply grate ful to our incre dible Hungr y Hear ts che fs , sp onsors , and donors .
Thanks to their generous suppor t , we raise d a re cord-breaking amount in suppor t of women in re cover y at the tenth annual Hungr y Hear ts gala!
The funds raised at the gala are instrumental in suppor ting Our Place in opening the f irst Therapeu tic R ecover y C ommuni t y for Women on Vancouver Island this winter.
Thank you for helping break the c ycle o f addic tion for women, familie s , and communi tie s on Vancouver Island.
Thank you to our Hungry Hearts Chefs!
Marilena Cafe & Raw Bar – Che f K ristian Eligh
House o f B oateng Cafe & Catering – Che f C astro Boateng
Del ta Vic toria Ocean Pointe R e sor t – Che f Cur tis Toth
B oom + Batten R e staurant & Cafe – Che f Laurie Munn
