It’s the end of an era at House of Friendship, as demolition of the former home of its Men’s Shelter is slated to begin this month, along with neighbouring administrative buildings. This demolition of the former Charles Street campus in downtown Kitchener is the first step towards creating Friendship Village – a new housing complex […]
For Mike and Kelly Peasgood, homelessness and addiction aren’t abstract issues. They are realities. Mike’s sister lost her husband to suicide, after a long struggle with alcohol use. It came as a shock to the rest of the family, since his struggles had always been hidden. “I guess he was a closet alcoholic,” said Mike. […]
Patricia is 54 years old and starting over, after years of struggling with addiction. As a patient living with diverticulosis, Patricia was initially prescribed morphine. Later on, when she started receiving radiation treatments, fentanyl was added to the mix. It wasn’t long before she started using street drugs, including crack cocaine and crystal meth. After […]
Margie Warren knows how lucky she is. “I grew up with everything I needed,” said Margie. “I had food and shelter, the love of my family, educational opportunities, and I knew I belonged.” Growing up, Margie was sheltered from a lot of the struggles that so many people face. “I knew there were poor people, […]
On any given Monday evening at ShelterCare, there’s a good chance you’ll see smiles on the faces of both program participants and staff. That’s because Scrappy the Dog comes by for a visit during the art drop-in program. The pet therapy dog is a big hit with participants, and must make his rounds before he’s […]
“I felt so supported. It was what I needed.” Danielle joined House of Friendship’s intensive two week Day Treatment program in late 2022, after coming to the realization she needed help to stop her drug use. Danielle, 29, grew up with an abusive father, and also went through the trauma of sexual assault. She spent […]
“This scholarship is changing my life.” Hoda, a first-year student in Biomedical Sciences at the University of Waterloo, is the inaugural recipient of the House of Friendship Leadership Scholarship, made possible by the Lyle S. Hallman Foundation. The scholarship is awarded to students both on the basis of marks and their leadership involvement in House […]
“Music is a universal experience. I think that everyone has some sort of connection to music.” Skylar, a master’s student in music therapy at Wilfrid Laurier University, is spending their summer interning at ShelterCare and supportive housing as part of their certification. This is something new for our ShelterCare program, which has never had a […]
“With my first step on Canadian soil, I felt relief. I felt safe.” Mayerly came to Canada in June 2022 with her husband Samir and teenaged son, Juan, fleeing political unrest in their home country of Colombia. “There were death threats against my family,” said Mayerly. “We had to leave.” They left with just one […]
Matt Mason learned something very important about himself during the COVID-19 pandemic – working remotely was not for him. “I missed the human interaction,” said Matt. “I missed the rhythm of going to work and seeing everybody. Conversing over Skype was not the same as seeing somebody in person and being able to communicate with […]
