OUR PLACE SOCIETY
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Mission Statement
Our Mission: Our Place offers Greater Victoria’s most vulnerable citizens a place to call their own, where we live, share and grow together. Our Vision: Nourishment, hope and belonging for all.
About This Cause
Our Place Society is a community service provider for the poor, disadvantaged, and homeless of Greater Victoria. From its Pandora Avenue location, Our Place Society runs a variety of life transforming services, including meals, housing, health and wellness, education, and practical care. Our Place operates houses 500 people each night in shelters and 8 temporary housing facilities. We are the largest emergency food supplier on southern Vancouver Island,preparing three meals that total 1300 served daily. Our Place has been the safety net for hundreds of street guests, seniors, low income earners, people experiencing homelessness, mental health and substance abuse challenges. Next door to the supervised injection site and across the street from the supervised inhalation sites, our paramedics provide wellness checks and overdose treatment daily. Our Drop in Centre provides a concierge service that is a mailing address and phone number for contact to and from family and work leads. The Drop in Centre staff and volunteers maintain a safe and dignified environment for people to shower, receive clean clothing, talk to a counsellor or spiritual care volunteer, find their place in the community, and connect with experienced, professional support staff. All of our services offer hope and belonging for the most vulnerable citizens of Greater Victoria. Transitional Housing & Shelter Details: • Our Place at 919 Pandora has 45 transitional housing units for the hardest to house in our region. The majority of people move directly from living on the streets into one of our units where they may stay for upwards of three years. Tenants receive the support of a housing team, which includes a mental health and addictions counsellor. The 15 units on our fifth floor are focused on those who are actively engaged in their recovery from addiction. Many tenants move up to the fifth floor as the final step on their journey into permanent housing. The New Roads Therapeutic Recovery Community houses residents who commit to up to 2 years of intense treatment for addictions, mental health and are homeless at time of entry. This innovative approach offers a unique blend of psychosocial and medical supports are offered, along with work as therapy and then support for re-entry into social. View the four stages and meet a resident here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fNah5-OR8-w&feature=youtu.be Outreach: Our Place Outreach Workers meet people where they are at, building trust with a vulnerable population that has often felt at odds with mainstream society. The team provides Advocacy, Financial Crisis Support, Field Trips, Hope Fund, Interventions, Sports, Hair Cuts, Showers, Access Pro Bono Legal Services, Overdose Prevention Site, Income Tax, Counselling, Aboriginal Housing Advocacy, Referrals to Employment, Housing, Government Agencies, Medical, Detox & Treatment Services. Education: Our Place partners with community groups and volunteers to provide a vast array of opportunities to enrich intellect, develop personal insight, unleash creativity and learn practical skills. Volunteers provide programs in the areas of: Art Group, a Library, a choir restarting in September 2022. At Our WorkPlace on Quadra, participants receive lifeskills and job preparation and computer training. Seniors in our 55+ club are offered opportunities for community gardening, outings, elder abuse workshops and a sense of belonging. Other programs smudging, memorial services, a knitting circle, beading groups, Pet care, Bike Maintenance, and more. Health: Our Place believes in bringing as many services as we can directly to the people we serve. To that end, the transformation of a washroom closet into a Medical Room delivers nurses, doctors and paramedics directly into the Drop-In Centre. Other health services provided by volunteers includes: Acupuncture, Acupressure, Chiropractic, Craniosacral Therapy, Massage, Therapy Dog, Dental Hygiene, First Aid, Foot Care, Hearing Clinics, Mayfair Optometric Clinic, Doctors, Nurses, Reflexology, Showers, and a Smart Recovery Program. Employment: A percentage of Our Place staff at 919 Pandora Avenue have first-hand experience with needing to access the services and supports of our organization. Some of our employees with lived experience have joined us through a Peers helping Peers mentorship program (supported by Island Health) that aims to support people struggling with employment due to issues surrounding poverty, addiction and mental illness.We also offer free Bus Tickets, Skills Training & Upgrading, and Bagged Lunches. History Our Place Society's flagship centre, located on Pandora Avenue, was purpose built in 2007 as the amalgamation of two of Victoria’s active social organizations in serving the region’s most vulnerable population since 1967. The Open Door and Upper Room were places of care and belonging and that tradition continues. Thank you for your support!