Dear Friend,
I’m not going to lie, I cry sometimes. I don’t cry in front of my kids, though.
It’s been a year since I lost my last job, and I need to find work soon. I’m running out of money – and my baby bonus won’t pay my rent forever.
My name is Melissa. I’m 40 years old, and I’m barely keeping my head above water. I’m afraid I won’t get another job, and it feels like I’m running out of options.
I first started working when I was 14 years old, at a Harvey’s in Guelph. I loved working there and stayed for 17 years. I was trusted enough to be a key holder.
It was a fun job for me. I enjoyed seeing the customers and working with my coworkers. I liked working hard.
When I moved to Kitchener, I had to leave this job behind. I soon found a housekeeping job at a local hotel. After two years, I had the chance to be a supervisor at another hotel, but I struggled with the long hours that kept me away from my family. It was hard to be away for 12 hours at a time.
I’ve had other jobs since then, but they’ve only been temporary, short-term jobs. Right now, I have one housekeeping customer, but it’s very part-time. I make less money than I ever have, but I still have two teenage boys to feed on my own.
And if it wasn’t for the help I get from House of Friendship, I don’t know what I’d do.
Every week, I go to Chandler Mowat Community Centre for their food program. I get enough groceries to feed my family for a week, and I work hard to make it last.
It helps a lot for someone like me who is struggling. It’s great to know that I can come here and get enough food to feed my family until I get back on track.
I love going to Chandler Mowat each week because I know I will see friendly faces, and people eager to lend a helping hand, and because I have a chance to give back
Every week, I volunteer at the food program, and that makes such a difference to me. I love being able to put a smile on someone’s face, to
help them the way House of Friendship is helping me. Sometimes, the people who come in will even catch me dancing. It puts everyone
in a good mood.
I do this because I know that I’m not the only person in this community who is struggling. You can see it on their faces. The
other people who come in here are just like me – they need help to get back on their feet.
Sometimes, someone will come in, and you can see they are having a bad day, and you can’t talk to them much. But other days, when they want to talk, I listen to them. I think it helps. I know it helps me.
I also get to volunteer at Snack Attack. This program makes sure that kids don’t go home hungry after a long day at school. And in the last year, I’ve seen more and more school children stopping by, just like at the food program. So many people need help these days.
One day, I started talking to a woman who had just arrived in Canada. She lives near Chandler Mowat Community Centre. Her support worker came and introduced her to the community centre, and she asked about Snack Attack.
I welcomed her and told her to pick-up some snacks for her young children. I also told her how to find out about all the services House of Friendship provides at Chandler Mowat
I like helping other people feel like they belong here, because that’s what everyone here has done for me.
Every week, when I volunteer, I get to talk to Aline, one of House of Friendship’s Community Development Workers. She’s always checking in with me to see if I need help with anything. She’s encouraged me in my job search and even helped me sign up as
a volunteer. She knows that volunteering is a great way for me to fill up the extra hours I have, and might even help me find a new job.
She’s amazing. I can talk to her about anything. She doesn’t judge anyone, and that helps so much. Everyone loves her, and it doesn’t matter who you are, she’ll love you back.
Aline, and the rest of the team here, have always made me feel welcome. And I haven’t always felt that way
As a kid, my home life wasn’t the best. After my parents divorced, we moved from Calgary to Ontario, and my mom had to work two jobs, just to make ends meet. We hardly ever saw her.
And when she got a better job opportunity, we moved to Guelph, and had to start over again. It was hard.
I liked school, even though I was in a special ed class. I had amazing teachers, and good friends. But coming home was a different story.
My mom used to date very abusive men. They always had harsh words, and there were a lot of fights. Sometimes, they would turn physical. Most days, I would rather be at school instead of home. But I would make sure to be there anyway, to keep an eye on my
younger brother.
And when I started dating, I found myself in the same situation, in a very toxic relationship where I wasn’t treated well. The best thing my boyfriend ever gave me was my children. After five years, I couldn’t take it anymore and left
I wanted more for my boys. I want a better life for them than we have today.
Right now, all three of us are living in a single-bedroom townhouse. It’s been our home
for the last eight years. I sleep in the dining room, and my boys have to share a bedroom.
It’s getting so much harder as they get older. Boys this age really need their privacy. I need it too.
I want to find a new, larger space for my family, but I can’t until I can get a full-time job. I keep trying, but it’s harder than it used to be to find work.But I know that until that happens, I can count on House of Friendship and caring people like you.
There are so many ways people like me can get help through House of Friendship. There’s after-school tutoring for kids and activities, along with staff like the Family Outreach Worker, who meets with families like mine. What’s great about going to Chandler Mowat is that if you have a problem, you can find out how to get help, and there’s always someone to talk to.
My kids have grown up here, and this community centre feels like home to them. They often stop by when I’m volunteering at Snack Attack, and talk to the volunteers here.
There’s something for everyone here – it’s about so much more than just the food.
What’s special about House of Friendship is that they help families everywhere in Waterloo Region. There are community centres all over the place that provide food, after-school programs, computer programs, and even English as a second language groups, helping people from other countries fit in.
It makes me happy to be part of the team here at House of Friendship.
I hope you know how much it means to me to know that there are generous people like you who make these programs possible. You are an important part of the community my family has found at Chandler Mowat.
I know that it might still take time for me to get a job – and I’ll keep on trying.
But in the meantime, I can rest at night knowing this. My boys will get a warm meal and more, because of you.
Thank you for caring and for reading my story. It really means more than you know.
A grateful mom, dreaming of a better future for her boys, thanks to you!
