we winter 2014

MAGAZINE OF UNITED WAY OF THE ALBERTA CAPITAL REGION • WINTER/SPRING • 2014

THIS ISSUE OF WE MAGAZINE IS GENEROUSLY SPONSORED BY EPCOR

PM

#40020055

Pam Spurvey’s story is one of heartbreak and recovery

The Way ForwardSupportive housing creates a path out of homelessness

Renewed EnergyThe industrial heartlandcollaborates for social change

Redemption Song

Small Initiatives Make a Big Difference

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4 MESSAGEFROM UNITEDWAY

5 COMMUNITY CHAMPIONS

If you’ve been to an Edmonton

fundraiser, you’ve probably seen

Lynn and Stephen Mandel.

6 THISWAYINA look at United Way’s recent

community initiatives.

9 MYTHBUSTERSPeople living in poverty aren’t

always unemployed; many

have two or three jobs.

40BUSINESSWAYLilydale’s United Way

campaigns have all the right

ingredients.

41 LEADINGEDGEWhen disaster hit, the Bissell

Centre used its vast network

to re-open the Thrift Shoppe.

42MILESTONESThe Empower U program

celebrates its two-year

anniversary.

24ITTAkESAVILLAGEEvery effort, no matter the size, helps to

build our communities. Several small,

but important, initiatives improve the

Alberta Capital Region.

28WHATSUCCESSLOOkSLIkEEdmonton mother Pam Spurvey lived a life

of generational poverty, addiction and crime.

She is proof that change is possible.

32AFFORDABLESOLUTIONSAlberta has the means to reduce poverty;

it’s time to turn words into action.

34JUSTDOITThey all have different reasons, but for these

female philanthropists from Edmonton,

giving back is second nature.

38MORETHANMONEYEPCOR is approaching a fundraising

milestone for its United Way campaigns,

but the company’s community involvement

goes deeper than financial support.

ONTHECOVER:Pam Spurvey has come full circle from a life of crime and addiction to helping others in these situations

PHOTO:Amy Senecal

DEPARTMENTS

SPOTLIGHTConnecting Communities

10 THEMANYFACESOFPOVERTYMany Albertans are just one unexpected event

away from a life below the poverty line.

14 THEWAYFORWARD

Supportive housing creates a way out of homelessness

and offers the chance to work together with neighbours

to build better solutions.

20STRAIGHTFROMTHEHEARTBusinesses in Alberta’s industrial heartland are

preparing for the Heartland Challenge,

a collaborative effort focused on philanthropy.

WINTER/SPRING • 2014

FEATURES

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O UR WAY

UNITED WAY OF THE ALBERTA CAPITAL REGIONeDiTOR-in-CHieF: Nancy CritchleyaSSOCiaTe eDiTORS: Mike Kluttig, Sue Huff, David OdumadeCOmmUniCaTiOnS aSSiSTanT: Cindy McDonald

EDITORIAL ADVISORY COMMITTEEMeredith Bongers, Joanne Currie, Sheilah Pittman, Anne Smith

SPONSORSHIP AND CORPORATE SUPPORT COMMITTEEMeredith Bongers, Nancy Critchley, Kevin Fitzgerald, Myrna Khan, Mike Kluttig, Stephane Hache

VENTURE PUBLISHING INC.PUBLISHER: Ruth KellyASSOCIATE PUBLISHER: Joyce ByrneASSISTANT PUBLISHER: Andrew WilliamsDIRECTOR OF CUSTOM CONTENT: Mifi PurvisMANAGING EDITOR: Jordan WilkinsART DIRECTOR: Charles BurkeASSOCIATE ART DIRECTOR: Andrea deBoerASSOCIATE ART DIRECTOR: Colin SpencePRODUCTION MANAGER: Betty Feniak SmithPRODUCTION TECHNICIANS: Brent Felzien, Brandon HooverCIRCULATION: Karen Reilly

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS: Nancy Burns, Nancy Critchley, Carissa Halton, Sue Huff, Alix Kemp, Michelle Lindstrom, Cindy McDonald, Omar Mouallem, David Odumade, Tricia Radison, Scott Rollans, Cory Schachtel

CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS AND ILLUSTRATORS: Nancy Critchley, Buffy Goodman, Raymond Reid, Amy Senecal, Curtis Trent

ABOUT UNITED WAYThe mission of United Way of the Alberta Capital Region is to mobilize collective action to create pathways out of poverty.

WE is published for United Way of the Alberta Capital Region by Venture Publishing Inc., 10259-105 Street Edmonton, AB T5J 1E3Tel: 780-990-0839 Fax: 780-425-4921 Toll-free: 1-866-227-4276 [email protected]

Printed in Canada by Transcontinental Interweb we is printed on Forest Stewardship Council ® certified paper Publications Agreement #40020055 ISSN 1925-8690Contents copyright 2014.Content may not be reprinted or reproduced without permission from United way of the alberta Capital Region.

WINTER/SPRING 2014 VOL 3 • No. 1

Community ConnectionsIN THIS ISSUE, WE ExAMINE THE POWER OF community connection and the synergy that happens when people

or organizations decide to collaborate to find solutions to complex

challenges. In the Industrial Heartland, companies are connecting to

challenge one another to build stronger ties to their community. In

the article focused on the complex issue of social housing, we explore

how community can only be built through a series of conversations,

where all points of view are valued and heard. The moving and

powerful story of Pam Spurvey (cover) reminds us that change is

possible.

In this issue, we also learn more about how people fall into poverty

and the many obstacles they must overcome to build a better life.

When we increase our understanding of the complexities of poverty

and dispel the myths that surround it, we strengthen our connection,

our compassion and our resolve to act.

Thank you to EPCOR for sponsoring this issue of WE. EPCOR’s

on-going commitment to the community is greatly appreciated,

including their support for the Empower U program (page 42)

and poverty simulation (page 38).

At United Way, building communities and supporting those who

are most vulnerable is our passion. I hope this issue inspires you and

ignites your imagination towards limitless possibilities.

allan Undheim,Vice President, Community Building and Investment

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COMMUNITY CHAMPION

When it Comes to supporting the Edmonton community, the Mandels

have set the bar high. Lynn Mandel,

a retired professional dancer and

Grant MacEwan University instructor,

and husband Stephen Mandel, an

entrepreneur and Edmonton’s former

mayor, have their hands full when it

comes to community involvement, but

the two wouldn’t have it any other way.

Q: what does an organization have to

say or do to get you involved?

Lynn: “Nothing, they just ask and I

never say no. That’s probably why

the list is so long. If I can help in any

way, I will. If they ask, ‘Will you be the

honorary chair of our fundraising event

that’s coming up?’ If I know I’m going

to be around, I’ll say yes. I make sure to

go to the meetings, too, and don’t just

put my name forward. I go and see what

they’re doing and do what I can to steer

them in the right direction.”

Q: why do you volunteer so much time?

Lynn: “It’s something I did before

Stephen became mayor. I taught at

Grant MacEwan University in the dance

and musical theatre department. When

I retired, I remained in an advisory

role in the dance department. Then a

company wanted to form out of that,

Mile Zero Dance which is still going

today, and I became its first chair.

Through Mile Zero I became involved

with the Support Network and helped

them for a number of years. It grew

from there; somebody else would ask

and I’d become a board member or

a fundraiser. When Stephen became

mayor, it was just a role that I was able

to continue. Our kids were away at

school at the time, and it’s something I

really enjoyed doing anyway.”

Q: will you both continue

volunteering the same way now that

Stephen is no longer mayor?

Lynn: “We’re getting pretty old,

we’re close to 70 and we’ve got

one grandson who’s 14 months old.

There are so many fundraisers in the

community, hundreds that people just

don’t know about. On a weekend we’d

maybe go to four or five in a night but

we’d still have to miss hundreds. Still,

I’ll probably keep doing what I can.”

stephen: “I’ll be a little more

focused. I believe a great deal in the

challenges of family violence. The

biggest thing I hope to get involved

in is pushing some solutions to fetal

alcohol syndrome – FASD is one of the

greatest challenges our society faces.

Q: what do you feel you get most out

of volunteering?

Lynn: I don’t really think about it

that way. I really am a believer that if

I can, then I should. I must. I’m able

and I’m good at it, so I do it. I always

used to say that if I think I can sit in

my nice house in the west end and not

even care about what goes on in the

other side of the city, then I’m wrong.

It affects me. It affects everyone. I

always think about it like a piece of

choreography: If I don’t do my little

part, the whole thing falls apart. It’s

the same here; everybody should

do their little part. It’s also a great

privilege to have the time to do it.”

stephen: “At the end of the day you

hope you’ve done some good, but it’s

never as much as you’d like. It’s also

a very selfish thing for me because

I think it’s a lot of fun. We’ve met

tremendous people. It’s a greater

benefit to us than to anyone else, to be

honest. When people start saying that

they’re going to give back, I’m not sure

those are the right words. I don’t think

there’s an individual that gets involved

in an organization who doesn’t gain

more than they give.”

Edmonton’s dynamic duo can’t say ‘no’ to a good cause

Always on Board

by Michelle Lindstrom

PH

OTO

: Ra

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by United Way Staff


Roundup BReakfaSt Yee haw! On nOvember 7, mOre than 550

community supporters celebrated the United Way mid-

campaign progress, western style, at the Roundup Breakfast.

The mid-campaign event was proudly presented by Enbridge,

Northlands and WorleyParsons at The Westin Edmonton.

Led by Gary Bosgoed, 2013 United Way campaign chair

and emcees Marni Kuhlmann and Josh Classen from CTV, the

crowd rang cowbells to celebrate the mid-campaign total of

$13,850,972. “This represents 60 per cent of our $23.6 million

goal,” says Bosgoed. “Thanks to the dedication of our many

workplace campaigns and the people of the Alberta Capital

Region, I feel confident we will reach our goal. We can do this.”

Long-time corporate donor PCL broke the company’s previous

fundraising record and raised $2.4 million during its 2013

United Way workplace campaign.

Nine-year-old fiddling sensation Jack Forestier and his

parents kept the energy up in the room with their country/folk

inspired melodies. A photo corner with hay bales offered the

perfect western backdrop for attendee group shots by live event

photography company, That Just Happened.

You could have heard a pin drop when Mercedes, a 17-year-

old mother, shared her compelling story. She received a standing

ovation after explaining how she turned her life around thanks

to the support she received from Terra Centre, a United Way

funded partner that helps teen parents.

This high spirited western-themed event inspired attendees

to continue on down the trail toward their campaign goals.

WHat It’S aLL a-Boot: Attendees at the Roundup Breakfast proudly display United Way’s mid-campaign total of $13, 850, 972.

BaCk In tHe SaddLe: Steve Richards, PCL’s United Way Campaign Chair, was proud to announce the company’s personal record of $2.4 million raised in 2013.

If You’Re Gonna pLaY In aLBeRta: Attendees were treated to a show by nine-year-old fiddling sensation Jack Forestier.



Creating Pathways Out Of POverty

United Way of the alberta Capital Region received a generous $400,000 grant from Microsoft to

commemorate the grand opening of its new West Edmonton

Mall retail store. On October 26, a large group of United Way

supporters joined a high energy crowd of invited guests for a

sneak preview of the store.

Allan Undheim, vice president, community building

and investment with United Way of the Alberta Capital

Region, happily accepted the cheque. With the grant came an

additional $7,000 in-store credit. A big thank you to Microsoft.

thOusands Of reasOns

live in poverty, 37,000 of which are children. Living in poverty is not just about having

limited resources to make ends meet, it’s also about the negative feelings it creates, the

isolation, the sense of loss and the stress that comes along with it.

United Way launched a new poverty simulation initiative to increase awareness

and to highlight the feelings associated with living in low income. The simulation gives

participants an educational experience of life in poverty. To get involved and learn more

about the initiative, contact United Way.

Poverty is a complex issue. “It’s challenging work, but it’s the right work,” says Anne

Smith. Bold steps are needed to improve lives and social conditions. Poverty hurts. It’s

time for a change. To show your commitment to help create pathways out of poverty, go

to myunitedway.ca and sign the statement of support.

JUne 18, 2013 marked a signifiCant day on the calendar for United Way of the Alberta

Capital Region. At the Shaw Conference Centre,

amidst a large gathering of government officials,

business owners, agency partners and not-for-profit

staff and supporters, United Way announced its new,

focused mission to create pathways out of poverty.

For 70 years, United Way has dedicated its efforts

to address many social issues in the region. But, in the

past couple of years, it has conducted research and

consulted with more than 60 partners in not-for-

profit agencies, government and the community, to

determine how to best focus and leverage resources.

Thanks to this research, United Way now has a

results-based approach and has identified 12 desired

results to create pathways out of poverty.

“We have been working with and listening to our

community,” says Anne Smith, president and CEO,

United Way of the Alberta Capital Region. “We

agreed that we must move from simply managing

the circumstances of poverty to actually creating

pathways out of it.”

The 12 desired results are focused in the areas

of income, education and wellness. By collaborating

with government, agencies, businesses and the

community, United Way will measure the impact

of its efforts and provide a report card to the

community, annually. A complete list of the 12 desired

results is available at myunitedway.ca.

In the Alberta Capital Region, 120,000 people

histOriC signing: Lynne Duncan, 2012 United Way campaign board chair, looks on as Phyllis Bellerose signs her pledge to create pathways out of poverty, United Way’s results-based approach to end poverty in the region.



November 20 is a day set aside to recogNize childreN’s rights, as outlined in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.

This year, 13 partners came together in our region to raise awareness and

encourage communities across Alberta to recognize and celebrate National

Child Day. Provincial partners distributed information and blue ribbons across

professional networks and, for the first time, a video was created by the Office

of the Child and Youth Advocate, based on this year’s theme: It’s Our Right to

be Heard. Across the province, people donned the blue ribbon to show support

for children and their right to be heard; to be protected from abuse, neglect or

exploitation; and to be provided an adequate standard of living.

National Child Day was marked in Edmonton with a Mayor’s Proclamation,

a free swim at YMCA locations on November 23, a conference on early learning,

child-centered activities at all Edmonton Public Library locations, and for the first

time, a poverty simulation held by United Way of the Alberta Capital Region.

The poverty simulation allowed participants to gain insight into the challenges

faced by families living in poverty. With 37,000 children in the Alberta Capital

Region living in poverty and children comprising 44 per cent of the people using

WithiN the first feW frames of UNited Way’s newest campaign video, Mark McCormack, president

of Make Poverty History Edmonton, says: “Almost every

issue that we have in society, whether it’s crime, whether it’s

drug abuse, whether it’s mental illness, most of that can be

boiled down to poverty and a lack of empathy.”

The video, called Creating Pathways Out of Poverty,

echoes the new mission for United Way and provides insight

into poverty and the effects it has on our community,

The VIDeO Way

a Day FOr, WITh anD abOuT ChIlDren

food banks, it’s clear we have a long way to go to eradicate

child poverty in our wealthy province. Children are the

most vulnerable members of our society and they rely

entirely on us to provide, protect and pave the way for their

participation.

National Child Day is one day of the year to focus our

collective attention on children, with hopes it will inspire

our community to ensure children are heard, nurtured and

protected 365 days of the year.

through direct interviews with people who have experienced poverty and those

who are working to end it.

Poverty is much more than a statistic to Mercedes Larocque, a 17-year-old

mother who is doing her best to provide for her son after going through more

trauma and abuse in her life than most of us could imagine. To her, poverty is a

lack of safety, security and stability.

We hear from Phyllis Bellerose, a hardworking woman who grew up in

generational poverty. After a slip in the shower resulted in a torn rotator cuff,

she found herself suddenly unable to work and struggled to pay her bills and

buy groceries.

The video continues to challenge our perceptions of poverty when a woman

known only as Elizabeth asks her interviewer, “Who thinks they are going to

become disabled?” before explaining that she never thought that her family would

fall into poverty and eventually homelessness.

Who is affected by poverty? How can we eliminate it? The video goes on

to answer these questions while subtly debunking the common misconception

that people experiencing poverty or accessing food banks should just get jobs.

“More than half of people living in poverty in our community not only work, but

they work in full-time jobs for the entire year,” says John Kolkman, a research

coordinator at Edmonton Social Planning Council.

The video concludes with a call to action and a message of hope that we can

end poverty if we act together. “After all, we do have the resources to do so; if we

choose to use them in the way that will end poverty, we will,” says Julian Daly, the

executive director at Boyle Street Community Services.

Visit myunitedway.ca to watch the Creating Pathways Out of Poverty video.

One TO WaTCh: United Way’s campaign video, Creating Pathways Out of Poverty, challenges common misconceptions of poverty.

FOr The KIDS: Lyall Brennies, manager of community strategies and development with the City of Edmonton,presents the proclamation on behalf of Mayor Don Iveson.


Mention the word poverty and all too often the common stereotypes come to mind:

the addict living a high-risk lifestyle, the single mother

relying on financial aid or the man wrapped in a sleeping

bag or pushing a shopping cart loaded with empty bottles.

There’s no doubt that addiction, single-income scenarios

and mental illness are huge factors for poverty, but these

are just a few of the countless situations that can send

someone below the poverty line.

Allan Undheim, vice president of community building

and investment with United Way of the Alberta Capital

Region, says that other factors may not be as obvious,

but they are just as powerful. That’s why a greater

understanding of just how easy it is to slip into poverty is a

vital step toward eliminating the common misconceptions

and, ultimately, gaining the support needed to reduce

poverty across the province. “Everyone is vulnerable,”

Undheim says. “We often think of Alberta as the land

of opportunity – we have jobs so we don’t have poverty

– but in reality there are thousands of people living below

the poverty line who have jobs; in fact, many have two or

three.” The myth that hard work is all it takes to get out of

poverty is one of the most common misconceptions that

Undheim hears and it’s also one of the most incorrect.

Alberta’s minimum wage is $9.95 but Albertans need to

make at least $15 per hour to ensure they can cover the

basic living essentials. Unfortunately, more than one-fifth

of working Albertans don’t make this much.

But, how does poverty happen? There are people who

have experienced poverty over several generations and

the challenge of breaking that cycle is enormous. But, for

others, all it takes is for life to throw a curveball: a divorce;

the loss of a job; a serious medical condition that prevents

Dispelling the common misconceptions that surround poverty is the first step to eliminating it completely

‘Just Work Harder’ by Martin Dover


MYTH BUSTERS

them from working; or a

natural disaster like last

summer’s flood. Alberta has its own

unique challenges, too, Undheim

says. Albertans have the largest

debt-to-income ratio in the country,

putting thousands at risk if interest

rates suddenly rise. And once you’re

in that situation, it takes more than

just hard work to get ahead; just ask

someone who has participated in

one of the poverty simulations that

United Way has facilitated during the

past year.

“The poverty simulations are

very eye-opening,” Undheim says.

“They really demonstrate how hard it

is to improve your life when living in

low income. Participants experience

the sense of hopelessness that

arises, too. No matter what you

try, you’re met with barriers and

roadblocks. Simple, everyday

tasks become difficult to complete,

so even something like figuring

out transportation or paying for

childcare becomes a struggle.”

Initiatives like the poverty

simulation are great ways to

increase awareness of what people

in poverty go through every day,

but unfortunately, Undheim says,

it often takes dire events to get

people’s attention. “If you don’t see

it, you don’t recognize it,” he says.

“Edmonton had a homelessness

problem well before tent city in 2007,

but that was when it became visible

to everyone. Until there is a crisis, the

vast majority of people may not even

be aware that there is a problem.”

Undheim says that awareness

is growing and, slowly, the biggest

myth of all – that there isn’t poverty

in Alberta – is crumbling. It begins

with acknowledging that there is a

problem. Only within the last decade

has the provincial government

publicly acknowledged poverty;

today, it has five- and ten-year plans

to end child poverty and reduce

poverty across the province. And,

while plans need to turn into action to

have any lasting effect, Undheim says

acknowledgement at the provincial

level should lead to a better overall

understanding of how poverty affects

us all and how to start reducing it.

“People are quick to judge without

understanding the journey or what

puts people in these situations” he

says. “We really need to try and

understand; if we don’t, myths will

continue to persist and grow.”

Poverty by the numbers

• 59.2% of Alberta children in poor families have one or more parents working full-time.

• over 20% of working Albertans make less than $15 per hour, the minimum needed to ensure the basic essentials.

• 58% of Albertans making less than $15 per hour are over the age of 25.

• 65% of this demographic is female.


wemagazine.Ca we • WINTER/SPRING • 2014 wemagazine.Ca 10


Many Albertans are just one unexpected event away from a life below the poverty line

11wemagazine.Ca

by Carissa Halton Illustration by raymond reid

a gun threatened his sons. His fear grew as David’s police

reports went uninvestigated. David and his family also

began to see the corruption of the police. In 2013,

an entire Honduran investigation unit of 1,400 police

officers were suspended because of alleged corruption

and ties to organized crime. The Rosaleses were terrified

of the power these prisoners wielded outside prison; so,

one night in June 2013, the Rosaleses fled. They flew to

Texas, rented a car and drove across the Canadian border

at Niagara Falls. It was then that David felt a new fear:

he faced a future in a foreign country surrounded by a

new language and he had no idea what was in store.

It has been a year and four months of uncertainty as

their refugee claim moves glacially through the system.

While they have been safe, it has been a time of great

financial insecurity.

Sitting across from me in a Tim Hortons, David and

Maria pleasantly refuse my requests to buy them a

coffee or tea. Their 11-year-old son, Javier, has a smile

T wo years ago, DaviD anD Maria Rosales would never have guessed they’d be living below the poverty line

in Edmonton. At the time, David was building one of Central America’s most secure jails. As principal contractor, it was the most lucrative, high-profile position he’d ever held; it would be his last job as an architect in his country of Honduras.

His problem began before the project was finished,

when the police moved Honduras’s most dangerous

prisoners – leaders of gangs and organized crime – into

the completed units in an effort to reduce overcrowding

in other prisons. One day, his main police contact called

him and said that some of the inmates demanded changes

to their units. “They wanted to have a bigger room, so they

paid the boss who then called me,” explains David.

Then David began receiving threatening phone calls;

the caller demanded blueprints of the prison. A man with

the Many Faces oF Poverty

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first arrived in Canada, they were entirely dependent on

the government for support. They received $1,250 for the

family. With this, they received a monthly card that allowed

them access to health care.

Eventually, work permits arrived and they could get jobs

(as long as they weren’t professional). Their health-care

insurance, however, ended along with the government pay-

ments. In the fall, Maria spent two nights in the hospital;

now they anxiously await the bill.

Their new inflated cost of living, combined with their

employment limitations, has compounded the financial

pressure so that they must work a number of jobs. For a

time, the whole family worked as cleaners and was paid

$900 per month for five nights a week, three hours a

day. During the day, David works in construction and

Maria makes and sells scarves and extravagant cupcakes.

so beautiful that I crack jokes just to see it. He happily shares my box of Timbits,

respectfully pausing to eat so he can translate for his mother.

“Do you have everything that you need here in Canada?” I ask.

“We are safe; that is most important. And we have enough money to pay for

the apartment and for the car,” Maria says. The car cost them $500 but works

well enough for David’s commute to work. She thinks about their budget:

“Maybe it is a little hard. I don’t know. The food – maybe there’s not always

enough. Food is expensive here.” She prepares all of her food – from tortillas

to beans to salsa – from scratch. When I ask her which item’s cost has most

surprised her, she doesn’t hesitate, “La leche!” At the same time her son says

equally emphatically, “Milk.” He is allowed to have it with cereal but not by

itself because it is just too expensive.

As their refugee claim winds through court, David and Maria are not allowed

to go to school or to work in either of their chosen professions. David is an

architect and Maria has a master’s degree in early childhood development and

spent 20 years as a kindergarten teacher-cum-principal in Honduras. When they


13wemagazine.Ca we • WINTER/SPRING • 2014

She takes care of other people’s children and cleans their

houses. When she speaks about this work, she brightens.

She is a beautiful woman; her dark hair is pulled back and

touches of grey highlight her strong cheekbones. Her bright

red coat and dangling earrings are festive; however, when

our discussion turns to leaving Honduras, stress and fear

fill her eyes to brimming.

“How long did it take you to stop feeling scared?” I ask.

Her son translates, “She still

feels it on the train. She worries

about gangs.”

Despite their vulnerability,

despite the cost of meat and

milk and health care, despite

that they must appeal to friends

and strangers, they have weath-

ered the experience of poverty

with great resilience. Some of this comes from the sheer

relief that they are no longer in any physical danger.

Another source of strength comes from community sup-

port. The family’s story is not just one of threats and

poverty; it is one richly threaded with friends at their

church and staff at the Edmonton Mennonite Centre for

Newcomers. Friends rented them an apartment below

market rate and bought them new furniture. Their church

community supports their varied businesses. Friends take

their son to Jasper while school administrators have

waived fees for his volleyball.

“We are learning to ask. It’s hard in the beginning,

learning to take our dignity, put it away and just talk with

people and say, ‘I need your help.’ Sometimes I wonder why

we are doing this,” says David in his baritone voice that

handles English gently. “Then I look at Javier and I think,

‘This is why.’ ”

For Jennifer Anders, the last few years of life below

the poverty line have brought feelings of shame. I meet

her at another Tim Hortons and over coffee she shares,

“I wish I never signed up on Facebook. It is so hard seeing

my old friends. They have their happy family and their

happy lives,” Jennifer says. “Sometimes they’ll even message

me saying, ‘I’d love to see you. We should go for a drink.’

But what would we talk about? Certainly not that I go to

the food bank.”

Like the Rosaleses, she hasn’t always had to live with so

little money. Jennifer grew up in a middle-class Edmonton

neighbourhood, in a house with a backyard pool. After

high school, she started working for an oil and gas firm

and worked her way up to become a purchaser. Often the

social convenor for the office, she organized gatherings,

fundraisers and events. She was the life of the party.

At first, she was a social drinker. Speaking with her now,

10 years later, she’s not so sure who she was. “I thought I was

the life of the party but maybe I was just drunk.”

Everything crashed down around her over a 21-day

stretch three years ago. Jennifer lost her job, her house,

her car. As her addiction spun out of control, her three-

year-old daughter went to live with

her father and stepmother. When

she finally achieved sobriety, and

was able to care for her daughter

again, she was diagnosed with

fibromyalgia.

“I was not prepared for life after

the ‘pink cloud’ [the first year a

person is in recovery]. I was so

pumped about my first-year birthday. The second year was,

‘Yay, nice!’ Now, it’s: I know I didn’t drink today. So what?”

Now, she finds herself in pain and filled with worry

around how her $1,125-a-month government support will

pay for the braces her daughter needs. Or, how she will ever

afford to pay for her daughter to go to college.

Because they cannot afford a car, she and her daugh-

ter walk a lot. They take the bus when Jennifer’s health is

bad. They have help from workers who drive them to their

monthly food bank appointment. Her mom will watch

her six-year-old daughter when Jennifer attends evening

programs put on by a variety of agencies. “These programs

make being on welfare livable,” she says.

Unfortunately, Jennifer’s recent illness has made her far

less secure in answering the question, “Is this experience

temporary?”

“With my health being the way it is, I’m not 100 per

cent sure that I’ll be able to work full-time when I’m done

school. I can handle living on not much – but it’s difficult

now not knowing whether I will be able to work,” says Jen-

nifer. “Also, will my doctor be supportive of me when I need

the paperwork for my disability? I avoid talking about it

because I feel like I’m treated with suspicion.”

What Jennifer has in common with the Rosaleses is that

she is living day-to-day. She tries to be hopeful. “I have to

think of the things I have and remember how life was before

treatment. I think what really keeps me going is that I am

going to school; I feel really proud of that,” she says.

The future for the Rosaleses also remains uncertain but

they remain optimistic. “I can sleep here in Canada,” David

says. “This poverty is not forever – I am sure of that.”

We are learning to ask. It’s hard in the beginning, learning to take our dignity, put it away and just talk with people and say, ‘I need your help.’

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LIKE FATHER LIKE SON: Kyle Soroka has been Canora Place’s property manager since its inception. His father Murray owns the facility.


ot two minutes after murray Soroka enters the office of his west Edmonton rental property, one of the

tenants comes to ask for a favour. He needs five bucks for a pack of cigarettes. “Barking up the wrong tree, buddy,” says Murray, with a coun-try-western twang. “But you can earn it.”

By earn it, he means pick up a shovel, help with

garbage disposal or take a shift at the thrift shop, all

social enterprises Murray started under his social agency

Jasper Place Health and Wellness (JPHW) in order

to employ people who have, at one point or another,

experienced homelessness. But before they can do any

of that work, Murray finds them a home, often here in

Canora Place, where he and his son Kyle, Canora Place’s

property manager, oversee 30 units occupied by men and

women who previously had no fixed address.

Supportive housing apartments are considered a best

practice of Housing First, a global philosophy and program

that believes a person can’t begin to deal with their

problems until there is a roof over their head. “Facilities

like Canora Place are often a last stop for these people,”

Kyle says. “This gives them another chance at a place that

understands what they’re going through.” Housing First has


N

Supportive housing creates a way out of homelessness and offers the chance to work

together with neighbours to build better solutions

by OMAR MoualleM Photography by CURTIS TReNT

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ForwardThe Way

been so successful in other cities that Edmonton started

its own program to fund agencies like JPHW to practise

this philosophy. But for Murray, who originally started

JPHW as a drop-in centre in 2008, getting people into

existing units and providing them a case worker are the

easy aspects of his job. Building new supportive housing

complexes, however, is an onerous feat, the extent of which

he learned last year when he tried building a 60-unit

apartment in a south Edmonton subdivision.

He’d spent years securing the funding, $12.1 million,

and finding the land, which was donated by the Holy

Trinity Riverbend Anglican Church. Again, the easy

parts. The next step was to mail out flyers informing area

residents of the plan, and that’s when the firestorm began.

Murray, who has tons of business experience and zero

community consulting experience, found himself leading

packed, heated town hall meetings. To some residents, the

idea of 60 “transients” moving into their neighbourhood,

where the average home sells for $620,000, was

concerning at best. Many felt blindsided by it. Others

complained that the consultation lacked transparency.

When the mayor was called in to soothe crowds and

explain how the apartment complex fit into the city’s 10-

Year Plan to End Homelessness, the crowd heckled him.



But Holy Trinity got the worst of it. “No Homeless” was spray-painted on the

exterior of the church. There were even threats to burn the place down. “The

church was caught in a very difficult position,” says Murray. In November, it

cancelled its lease agreement with JPHW, promising to revisit the idea once

better community consultation was in place.

For the people in need who are Fortunate enough to qualiFy for supportive housing, it’s a life-changing event that gives them responsibility

and a place in the community. They are accountable for 30 per cent of the rent

while the rest comes from organizations like Homeward Trust Edmonton.

“They don’t believe it’s real at first,” says Jay Freeman, executive director of

the Edmonton Homeless Commission. The City of Edmonton advocates for the

provision of housing for people with an income less than the median and who

spend 30 per cent more of their income on housing. Reducing homelessness is

something that benefits the entire community.

Consider the economic costs of allowing people to remain homeless. A Seattle

study found that each chronically homeless person costs the city $4,066 per

month, but after those same people entered the local Housing First program the

costs were between $958 and $1,472. The most extreme cases can cost upwards

of $100,000 a year – $1 million each per decade – much of it the result of costly

hospital stays for conditions caused or exacerbated by homelessness. A local

study, done by the Homeless Commission, found the average stay of hospitalized

Edmontonians who filled out the address box on medical

forms was nine days. But for those who checked “no fixed

address,” the average is 66 days.

As of October 2012, there were 2,174 Edmontonians

without a home, according to Homeward Trust, which

receives funding from the provincial government and

has disbursed more than $100 million in funds for

projects like Murray’s, resulting in 1,900 housing units

in just 11 years. Prior to 2008, the city watched the

homeless population grow eight per cent each year,

greatly outpacing total population growth. “Good times

or bad, it went up,” says Freeman. If they didn’t do

something different, there would be 6,500 people facing

homelessness in a decade. That’s why the commission was

formed and tasked to create the 10-year plan.

Through the combined efforts of the commission,

Homeward Trust, various agencies and funding from the

provincial government – the homeless population decreased

by one-third in five years. The cornerstone of the plan has not

been more shelters (the commission actually wants to reduce

shelter beds), but more supportive and supported housing.

Supported housing comes in many forms, but the vast

HOME SWEET HOME: Supportive housing like Canora Place has helped decrease Edmonton’s homeless population by one-third in the last five years.

Housing options

When looking for a home, people experiencing

homelessness who qualify for housing have a

few options.

independent units: Social agencies representing

people looking for homes broker deals with apartment

landlords that may be below market value. Once housed,

tenants are assigned a support worker with whom they

meet regularly for a minimum of 12 months.

supportive Housing: A group complex where all the

tenants are previously without a home and the property

manager has a background in dealing with people who

have mental health problems. There are often visitor

curfews and community programs. Residents can live

there as long as they want.

Enhanced supportive Housing: A group complex

with all the same features as supportive housing but is

specialized for people with more extensive challenges or

needs, those who might require in-house counsellors or

even meal service.



majority is independent market units, where an agency

like JPHW brokers a deal with a rental landlord that may

be lower than the market price. You’d think this would

be a hard sell, but landlords love it because if there are

problems with tenants there’s a third party, like Murray,

whom they can call. Most of all, they love it because it’s

guaranteed rent and their tenants tend to stay longer.

Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation reports a 39

per cent annual turnover rate among all apartments, but

local Housing First participants

have a much lower rate, according

to Freeman.

Independent, scattered units

have their downsides. Many sites

are in the inner city, closer to the

street life they left behind. On the

other hand, with units outside the

inner core, there’s loneliness, loss

of community and boredom. “They find themselves with

an apartment, which is a decided improvement from the

street, however, chances are they’re not employed and, as

bad as the street life was, there’s a community there,” says

Freeman. “Now they’re looking at four walls, they don’t

know anyone in the community and they’re lonely. The

loneliness may drive them to gravitate back to their old

friends and lifestyle or they may invite their friends back

to their apartment. Neither is good. This is why programs

like Welcome Home are so important.” Welcome Home

connects volunteers with the newly-housed individuals to

provide them with companionship and introduce them to

their new community.

This type of program might

have made a difference for

someone like Lynn (name has

been changed).

She found housing twice, and

was evicted twice. “We and the

City had helped set her up,” says

her mother Sandra Dowie. “But

when you have an apartment

and the other people heavy into drug use know there’s a

place to go to, they show up constantly, offering drugs in

exchange for a place to stay. Now you have this stream of

free drugs and people crashing at your place. So her drug

use would actually increase when she had an apartment

close to the street scene.”

For nearly a decade, Dowie kept her daughter’s life a

secret. Due to shame and embarrassment, she didn’t tell

people who she saw regularly at social functions. Some

of them didn’t even know she had a second daughter.

Only now has she started opening up, bravely speaking

to audiences and advocating for supportive housing on

behalf of United Way and JPHW. After hearing the anger

and misconceptions surrounding the recent failed project,

she couldn’t stay silent. Now that her daughter is clean

and sober, she would be an ideal candidate for this type of

housing. “It would be a nice facility for someone like Lynn.”

But who is someone like Lynn? The reality might

surprise you – and it hits close to home.

Riverbend is an affluent community in Edmonton’s

south side. Here, single-family dwellings with jutting

double-car garages line manicured crescents, all just a

jaunt from the river valley. Developed in the 1970s, it

was the Terwillegar Towne of its time, and it was where

Sandra Dowie and her then husband moved to raise their

young daughters.

Riverbend was a step up from Old Strathcona, which is

now a vibrant, trendy community, but in the early 1980s

was blighted and sketchy. Dowie never found people

sleeping in her backyard in Old Strathcona, but she knew

Welcome Home connects volunteers with the newly-housed individuals to provide them with

companionship and introduce them to their new community.

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wemagazine.Ca 18 we • WINTER/SPRING • 2014

neighbours who had. She was satisfied to move to Riverbend, where sighting

panhandlers was rarer than sighting deer. “There was a sense that pleasantness

was part of the package, that we’re comfortable now and this is a nice life,” says

Dowie, now a project manager in post-secondary education.

And then came the call that changed her life.

The high school Lynn attended asked Dowie to come pick up her 15-year-old

daughter. She’d passed out in the hallway, drunk, in the middle of the day. From

that moment on, Dowie says, “it was like watching a slow-motion train wreck.”

Drinking, drugs, severe depression. It would be years before Dowie would

learn that her daughter was coping with trauma after a family friend had

sexually assaulted her. But by then Lynn was addicted to drugs and well on her

way to living on the streets.

Contact over the next eight years was touch and go, even though Sandra

knew Lynn was out there, somewhere, in Edmonton. One spring day, she

agreed to meet her daughter for coffee downtown, not

far from her office. When Dowie arrived, she found her

daughter picking cigarette butts out of the public ashtrays.

“My stomach turned,” remembers Dowie. “I looked at her

and she hadn’t washed for some time. She looked just like

those homeless people that I tried to avoid.”

Today, Lynn, now 33, is starting to remind her mother

of the daughter she raised – the one that was nuts about

horses, who loved hiking, who was always energetic,

who was crazy good at math. The turning point was an

independent housing unit in Century Park, far removed

from the inner city, unlike her first two houses. She’s been

there four years with her partner, and although she’s not

ready to work yet, she’s started sewing, exercising and

gaining a daily routine.

Still, her mother says, she’d benefit greatly from a

supportive housing complex like the one Murray hopes to

build one day. Not only would it be far removed from the

inner city, but it would have trained professionals, visitor

curfews and a community of people who are also trying to

turn their lives around. In a supportive housing situation,

the community within the walls of the complex is not the

only one that provides a positive influence. With the right

development and approach, neighbours in the surrounding

community can demonstrate support, too.

GOOD NEIGHBOURS: Tenants of Canora Place volunteer at community events and help maintain the facility itself.


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If you look at the map of Edmonton’s supportive hous-

ing, both group and independent, it looks like a cookie

in the centre of a big plate with a few scattered crumbs.

The reasons for the concentration aren’t just what many

would call Not In My Back Yard-ism. It’s also partly due

to city planning. For decades,

Edmonton used to require

developers of subdivisions to

dedicate some land to social

housing, just as they’re required

to make room for parks and

schools. That ended a few

decades ago after a court battle

between the City and developers. Edmonton is also a

homeowners market, so rental vacancies are scant.

But if not the central neighbourhoods, then where?

Which neighbourhood is willing to help reintegrate people

who are experiencing homelessness into society? Not even

mature neighbourhoods that have dealt with the issues of

homelessness for decades readily embrace social housing.

When Murray proposed Canora Place, the community

league wouldn’t even talk to him. They boycotted his

consultations and wrote angry protests to city councillors

and newspapers. “Now our renters deliver the community

league flyers,” says Murray. “They pay us for that.”

Canora Place has also adopted five blocks that tenants

keep clean all summer long. They host free barbecues.

When there are community concerts, Canora Place

residents are the muscle that set up and tear down stages.

The Sorokas also organize free trips to the zoo, Muttart

Conservatory and the like. “And we take other low-income

people from the neighbourhood with us who don’t get these

opportunities” adds Kyle.

Irene Blain, a long-time resident of Canora, originally

protested Canora Place. “I thought there would be a lot

more drug dealing in the area,” she says. Instead, she

saw the crime stats go down. And the last time she checked,

property values were up. “When it’s new it’s a learning

experience – for the police, the clients, the community,” says

the retired nurse.

That said, things could have been done better both in

Canora as well as in the proposed south Edmonton site, she

says. Although the developments are publicly funded, from

municipal, provincial and federal levels, it’s not technically

a public project. So the consultation process isn’t led by

public servants but by the social entrepreneurs who received

funding to carry out the plan. Murray is the first to admit

he was not equipped to deal with Terwilligar Towne’s

concerns. “We’ve all learned – me, the Province, the City,

my funders – that sending the service provider to lead the

consultation is not the best idea.”

Another challenge is transparency and communication.

Some south Edmonton residents were angry that the plan

sprung up on them, that they didn’t hear about it until it

was almost a done deal. But

until the land and money were

secured, it was difficult to

formulate a plan. “You can’t

consult with them if you can’t

answer their question because

you don’t know the answers

yourself yet,” explains Freeman.

He says he will improve on his consultation plan, so

there’s no reason to dismiss supportive housing altogether.

“In order for us to end chronic homelessness, permanent

housing has to be part of the solution,” Freeman says. “We

can’t reach our goal without it. And permanent housing

can’t be dumped in the inner city. It’s not reasonable.”

The Holy Trinity Church is still committed to turning

its vacant land into some form of social housing. Equally,

it admits it needs to set the stage for better consensus, so

it can work more closely with south Edmonton residents

to help people reintegrate into society and help curb the

economic costs of homelessness.


Which neighbourhood is willing to help people experiencing

homelessness reintegrate into society?



GET INVOLVED: Last year, Agrium employees visited several agencies funded by United Way in order to see where their donations go. At YESS, Agrium employees spruced up the organization’s headquarters. Agrium donated $5,000 to cover the costs of the effort which included pouring cement, repairing the atrium roof, shoring up an area with railway ties and painting.

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Iby Jordan Wilkins


f you haven’t heard of the heartland Challenge yet, expect to throughout 2014. After all, when some of the larg-est companies in the Fort Saskatchewan region collaborate

to increase support for United Way, the sky is the limit. The initiative is the brainchild of Kevin Melynk, plant manager of Agrium’s

Redwater location, who during his role on United Way’s campaign cabinet

noticed more and more companies in Alberta’s industrial heartland running

campaigns. Melynk knew how involved Agrium and its employees have been

with the organization over the years, but recognized a larger potential with

regional businesses working together to meet a common goal. Discussion began

between Melynk, United Way and other company representatives, and the

Heartland Challenge was born.

But calling it the Heartland “Challenge” might be misleading, Melynk

admits. Companies will challenge one another to become more involved in the

community, but it’s not a competition in the traditional sense. “This isn’t just

about who can sign the biggest cheque,” Melynk explains. “We’re going to focus

on what companies can do to get employees involved, through work and in their

personal lives.” Donating money is always important. “But this is about more

than that.”

At Agrium, Melynk says the company and its employees back up this philoso-

phy by holding several Days of Caring during each campaign. These days have

been met with positive feedback, Melynk says, demonstrating the enthusiasm

Companies in the industrial heartland connect with the community

Heartfrom tHe

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wemagazine.Ca 22

individual campaigns grow over the years, too. Agrium’s support of United

Way predates even his tenure, but the recent focus on employee involvement,

like Days of Caring, is relatively new. Originally, campaigns were limited to

Agrium matching dollars donated by employees. This is still an important

part of each campaign – last year employees and contractors at Agrium’s two

sites raised about $250,000 for United Way, which Agrium then matched—

but Bennett says the highlight last year was how many employees participated

in Days of Caring. Bennett recalls one in particular, where Agrium employees

spent a day touring three organizations supported by United Way. Employees

visited KARA Family Resource Centre, Edmonton John Howard Society and

Youth Empowerment & Support Services (YESS) to see first-hand how their

donated dollars help the community. At YESS, Agrium employees performed

extensive landscaping duties and spruced up the organization’s headquarters.

“We had a busload with us,” Bennett says. “I’ve heard a ton of positive feed-

back from that day. Now that some employees have actually seen where their

money goes, they’ve become ambassadors, sharing their experiences with

other workers and their friends and families. That’s really what the Heartland

Challenge is all about.”

Dow Canada’s relationship with United Way is part of the company’s global

culture. Branches across North America run campaigns each year and news

always spreads throughout the company regarding successful totals.

The Fort Saskatchewan branch stands out among the organization, but if

you ask Darek Brewin, a project engineer with Dow, there is always room

for improvement.

For Dow’s campaigns to enjoy the success they do, a lot of strategy is

employees in the Fort Saskatchewan region have for their

community. As Melynk says, the Heartland Challenge

isn’t about putting the “heart” in Alberta’s industrial

heartland; that’s something that has always been there.

“Our main goal with the Heartland Challenge is to con-

nect that heart back to the community,” he says. “It’s giv-

ing the thousands of employees in the industry the time

and the means to give back and get involved.”

The group held its first unofficial meeting last Sep-

tember where Melynk was able to see which companies

were serious about the collaboration. “The response was

immediate and unanimous,” he recalls. Melynk quickly

lists the organizations that immediately came on board:

Access Pipeline, Agrium Inc., City of Fort Saskatchewan,

Dow Canada, Evonik Industries, Pembina Pipeline,

Shell, Sherritt International and Umicore Canada; and

he’s confident more will be there when the first official

meeting takes place in early 2014.

Barry Bennett, an environmental advisor with Agrium

for 11 years, attended the meeting last September and

was named vice-chair of the Heartland Challenge. Ben-

nett is excited to see how United Way campaigns will

evolve now that organizations in the region will start

communicating about which strategies work and which

don’t. In his time with Agrium, he’s seen the company’s


TOOLS FOR SChOOL: Last fall, Dow Fort Saskatchewan site employees donated and packaged school supplies for Days of Caring.


23wemagazine.Ca

required. Brewin says employees who help out go

through philanthropic succession planning, usually

beginning with organizing a certain aspect of the

campaign and ultimately working their way to chair the

campaign for one year. After they’ve been chair, they

then “retire” into an advisory position to ensure future

campaigns continue Dow Canada’s storied success.

Brewin was preparing to enter this consultative role after

co-chairing last year’s campaign, but when he heard rum-

blings about the Heartland Challenge and the meeting

last fall, he was intrigued.

Brewin is now the official chair of the Heartland Chal-

lenge and has a plethora of new ideas for their United

Way campaigns. “The main point of the Heartland Chal-

lenge is collaboration,” Brewin says. “It’s a chance to learn

from our neighbours, who share common challenges and

advantages, about how to increase charitable donations

and community involvement. It’s going to be a great

learning opportunity to help one another and I think

we’ll all see the results this time next year.”

Traditionally, their campaigns have focused more on

monetary efforts, Brewin says, but after catching wind

of the Days of Caring other companies like Agrium had

been organizing, the Dow site held a few of its own dur-

ing its last campaign. Recently, Dow Fort Saskatchewan

site employees took a day

to package much-needed

school supplies into

backpacks, which then

went to children in need.

Promoting education is

a vital aspect of society,

Brewin says, but it’s also

a fundamental aspect of

the Heartland Challenge. “We used to run our campaigns

in a silo,” he explains. “We would always build on what

worked during our own previous campaigns; now we can

build on what’s worked for companies throughout the

entire industrial heartland.”

While this collaborative philanthropic effort is new

to most of the companies participating in the Heartland

Challenge, Brewin isn’t surprised by how quickly the

program has gained support. He says businesses in the

Fort Saskatchewan area already have an existing inter-

dependency and views this effort as a natural next step

for the region.

Companies in the industrial heartland currently col-

laborate on several community-awareness initiatives as

well as promoting regional safety through the local fire

departments and emergency planning initiatives. “If something

happens to one of our neighbours, it affects us all,” Brewin says.

“The Heartland Challenge broadens the relationships that we’ve

already established as an industry.” Brewin expects that working to-

gether with neighbouring companies should alleviate some challeng-

es that arise during campaigns,

too. Sorting out the logistics for

the Days of Caring is one such

challenge.

A lot of events take place

outside the Fort Saskatchewan

community, and organizing

transportation to take em-

ployees to and from locations

can be difficult. By increasing the philanthropic communication

between businesses, Brewin believes connecting employees to the

community will be easier.

Bennett agrees and is looking forward to the many ways the

collaboration will promote community involvement for the tens of

thousands of employees in the industrial heartland. While noth-

ing is official, he’d like to see some industry-related initiatives go

along with the Heartland Challenge. One idea is a clothing drive

for gear like work boots, hard hats and safety glasses. But, wherever

the Heartland Challenge goes this coming year, Melnyk, Bennett

and Brewin all know that there is unlimited potential when the

industrial heartland and its communities get together to support a

common cause. “At this point there’s really nothing official on the

table, but there’s nothing off the table either,” Bennett says. “I’m

really excited to hear what everyone is going to come up with; 2014

The main point of the Heartland Challenge is collaboration. It’s a chance to learn from our neighbours, who share common challenges and advantages, about how to increase charitable

donations and community involvement.


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STANDARD OF CARE: Dow Canada hopes to hold more Days of Caring for its site employees next campaign.


called the Winter Garden Tea Party, on January 20,

2013, in the Moon Flower Room of the Enjoy Centre in

St. Albert. Hole’s husband co-owns the Enjoy Centre,

which helped narrow down a venue.

She says not much happens in Edmonton in January,

so this gave people something to do, and it also allowed

them to offer the $40 ticket to friends and family as a

t’s so simple. maybe it’s too simple? you check in with a loved one and ask, “Does this idea sound crazy?” Even though, in most

cases, the decision has already been made. You just needed to hear your innovative, community-minded idea out loud and receive that much-needed reassurance. You’re ready to give it a try no matter what. The time has come to stop considering doing something; now you just need to follow through on your master plan. That’s the process many local philanthropists shared with WE about how they turned a brilliant idea into a fully-functioning community initiative.

For the love oF booksMarcia Hole finished The Language of Flowers by Vanessa

Diffenbaugh and felt the story of a woman who spent her youth in

the foster-care system was life-altering. That’s when she had her

“crazy idea.”

“I wanted to do something that wasn’t black tie or an evening

event,” Hole says. “Those events do wonderful things but there’s

a whole segment of the population that is excluded from that

experience of being able to give back to their community [due to

ticket prices].”

With support from her book club, friends and family, the Peren-

nial Book Club was created. It held an inaugural afternoon event,

Local philanthropists make a difference with creative community initiatives

by MICHELLE LINDSTROM illustrations by STOckweLL cOLLINS

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through the events.

“Raising money for any organization is a lot of

work, but rewarding,” Polowy says. “When you believe

very strongly about a need in the community, it is so

easy to organize and run an event. You learn so much

and grow to be a better person for it.”

Passion over exPerienceA couple of years ago, Jill Boychuk, a part-time

dental hygienist, decided to tack on a new career:

clothing design. She started EarthGroove, an active-

wear clothing supplier, after a nudge from her mom

who said, “Do it, don’t wait.”

Boychuk keeps her support local by getting fabric

from British Columbia and thread from Montreal.

“Most of my materials are recycled, eco-friendly or

bamboo, which is a renewable resource.”

In addition to supporting local business, and

Earth-friendly concepts, she makes it a mission to

offer her clothing as auction prizes to as many

Edmonton fundraisers as she can. Her mom

passed away from cancer about two years ago,

but her mother’s inspiration lives on through her

artwork that’s still displayed on some of Boychuk’s

clothing designs.

See earth-groove.com for more information.

Christmas gift and share the experience with around 400 other people who

attended the event. The Perennial Book Club focuses on using literature to

build relationships and create stronger communities. While not a book club

in the formal sense, attendees discussed the novel over tea. Proceeds raised

through ticket sales and local sponsors went to a non-profit organization with

a special connection to the book. Youth Empowerment & Support Services

(YESS) was selected, and a representative was invited to explain to attendees

the organization’s goal to provide shelter, safety and hope to youth at risk.

When Hole was diagnosed with breast cancer, her plans to hold a sec-

ond annual fundraiser were unfortunately put on hold. She remains very

passionate about the idea and feels a realistic date for the next Perennial

Book Club will be around January 2015. Keep an eye on the Perennial Book

Club’s Facebook page for updates and events to come. www.facebook.com/ThePerennialBookClub

More Than Kid TalKHaving her brother Christopher spend time in the Stollery Children’s

Hospital for a rare disease called Kawasaki meant Kelley Polowy spent

a lot of time there, too. She supported him as any caring and innovative

four-year-old sister would. “I asked my family and Stollery staff a lot of

questions,” Polowy says, now 11. “I thought about sick children and wanted to

help them. One day, I told my mom that I wanted to sell my art for sick kids

and that is how it all began.”

Since her first fundraising event in 2007, Polowy, along with the help of

family and friends, has made crafts, jam, baked goods and more, that she sells

each year either at the community hall or her home. To date, they’ve raised ap-

proximately $26,000 for the Stollery Children’s Hospital Foundation.

In addition to the money raised, Polowny has grown and matured

25wemagazine.Ca


Repairathon website. The Edmonton event has since gath-

ered a group of about 25 volunteers with varied sewing ex-

perience to spend a couple of hours mending clothing items

for others who don’t have the ability to do it themselves, or

the means to pay a tailor. Spencer says the idea is not to take

business away from professionals; rather, it’s a free com-

munity service volunteers provide to keep clothing out of the

garbage.

The group held a family and friends event first to test

things out and then held the first public Repairathon on

October 27, 2013, with 40 attendees getting pants hemmed,

buttons sewn and knees patched at the Abby Road Housing

Co-op. The space was free since one of the volunteers lives

there, but Spencer hopes to eventually gather a few sponsors,

and therefore some funding, to rent out a larger space and

move the idea around the city.

Check out YEGrepairathon.blogspot.ca for updates on

the next event and location.

Beautiful Music togetherJaima Geller is the instructor of an Alberta Health Services

(AHS) program called Moms, Music and More.

When she started to take her own guitar lessons about

a decade ago, she thought it might be helpful to teach

pregnant or new mothers in need – a teen mom or a woman

with postpartum depression – how to play as well.

“Music gathers people together no matter what their

differences are,” Geller says, adding that bringing women

together builds their confidence if the setting is safe and

comfortable. Women are chosen by AHS based on their

fill a gapParent Advocates Linking Special Services (P.A.L.S.S.) was

created in the Fort Saskatchewan area in 1998 by parents

of children with disabilities. By connecting with various

agencies in the community, the organization developed

pottery classes, swimming lessons and other social

programs to promote inclusion and provide support for

parents and the rest of the family. Visit www.palss.ca for

more information.

Meet, patch and repairFixing a ripped pair of pants by adding a patch instead of

simply throwing them out is music to Kate Spencer’s ears.

Spencer is the co-ordinator of the Repairathon, an initiative

that came into fruition after Spencer visited the Toronto

Mentor Anita and Emma

we • WINTER/SpRINg • 2014 wemagazine.Ca 26


help people in the Oliver community get to know one

another better, creating a healthy sense of pride among

neighbours. Find out more on the Facebook page. facebook.com/OliverCommunityLeague.

Fit For WorkWearing a power suit is liberating. Staff and volunteers of

the Suit Yourself organization are more than aware of that.

“The clothing has really made a difference for clients,” says

Lori McConnell, Suit Yourself’s executive director. “They

have gone through training, they have the skill set, but they

just aren’t comfortable with how they are able to portray

themselves.”

That’s where Suit Yourself comes in. The organization is

aligned with 65 different social agencies who refer women

to the charitable clothing provider. They just need to be

looking for full-time employment and be in need, McConnell

explains; otherwise the clothes provided are completely free.

Suit Yourself helps more than 600 women a year.

Volunteers spend about two hours selecting clothing,

shoes and accessories for each woman and aim to send each

home with about 25 pieces to mix and match for a month.

Once the client has obtained full-time work, she is invited

back for a second visit to add to or adjust the clothing pro-

vided to be more specific to her workplace needs.

“It’s truly women helping women,” McConnell says. “We’re

successful because women of all ages are able to donate their

clothing to us and feel that they’re making a difference in

somebody’s life.”

See www.suityourselfclothes.org for more information.

needs and whether it’s believed they will benefit from a

guitar session. Each session includes about seven one-hour

classes with three to five women total.

Geller, 61, is “basically retired” and buys all the guitars

with her own money for the women and lets them keep the

instrument, along with a tuner and music book. “Learning

this new skill really acts as affirmation that they are worthy,”

she says.

LittLE FrEE LiBrAriESThe community of Oliver has an abundance of apartment-

style homes and neighbours don’t really get to know each

other, says Annalise Klingbeil, who lived in Oliver and sat

on the community board. Having grown up in Calgary,

Klingbeil knew of the Little Free Library project and saw its

positive results in her home town.

The opportunity for Oliver to commandeer 10

newspaper boxes offered the community the chance to

start up their own Little Free Libraries. With a call out

to the community to help paint the boxes and provide the

donations of books, by September 2013 three boxes were

on the streets within Oliver’s community boundaries. The

idea is to take a book and leave a book, and it’s catching

on. Klingbeil says in addition to community members

coming out to paint the boxes, further relationship building

happens organically around the Little Free Libraries

because they are perfect conversation starters. “What

book are you taking, or leaving?” “How was it?” “What’s

your all-time favourite book?” These simple questions

we • WINTER/SPRINg • 2014 27wemagazine.Ca


Looks Like

What SucceSS

hen the police raided pamela Spurvey’S home in Camrose for the second time in just a few weeks, she lost

everything. They arrested her, charged her with dealing drugs to teenagers in the small community and Spurvey lost custody of her children, including her two-week old son. Addicted to alcohol, crack cocaine and crystal meth, she had turned to dealing in order to support her habits, and everything was falling apart. That was seven years ago.

Now, Spurvey is an addictions counsellor at the Edmonton Drug Treatment and

Community Restoration Court (EDTCRC), the same program that helped her get

clean after her arrest. She regained custody of her children and is doing everything

in her power to make up for the damage she caused while she was an addict.

Spurvey is an aboriginal woman with long, dark hair. She smiles frequently,

pausing to joke with coworkers or clients at the EDTCRC, or answer questions

about an upcoming party for alumni of the drug court program. Her office is in a

state of disarray, as she’s in the process of moving to make space for a new parole

office. There are boxes of supplies and decorations, and a corkboard of family

photos and children’s drawings. She looks relaxed and happy. It’s hard to picture

her seven years earlier, a meth dealer, or further back, a child on the streets of

Edmonton.

by ALIX KEMP Photography by AMY SENECAL

Edmonton mother Pam Spurvey comes from generational poverty, addiction and crime but she is living proof that change is possible

W

29Wemagazine.Ca We • WINTER/SPRING • 2014


Spurvey’s mother was a prostitute and an alcoholic, and

she spent much of her childhood in chaos. What few fond

memories she has of her childhood are of the months she

spent with family in Valemount, B.C. “When my mom would

get too sick, to the point where she couldn’t really take care

of me anymore, she would send me on the Greyhound back

to my family in Valemount. I would arrive on the bus, and

nobody would know I was coming, but they would get me

healthy and well again. Then my mom would come pick me

up and bring me back here, and I would be mixed up in that

world again.” Even when she quit drinking, Spurvey says her

mother was a “dry drunk,” an alcoholic who has quit drink-

ing but never emotionally recovered from the addiction. “It

was really difficult for me even when she was sober.” Spurvey

moved out when she was 15, dropped out of school, got a

job, and began drinking and experimenting with drugs like

mushrooms and acid.

At 17, pregnant with her first child, Spurvey was deter-

mined to straighten herself out. “I didn’t know how to be

a mom, so I went back to B.C. to try to raise my son, but I

just wasn’t ready for that. I did okay for a year, but I started

drinking and doing drugs by the time he was two years old.”

It was a cycle that Spurvey would repeat several times over,

moving someplace else for a new start only to slip into old

habits and fall deeper into the cycle of addiction and crime.

“I didn’t know how to stay out of chaos,” she says. “That’s

what I knew, and that’s where I felt I fit in.”

After returning to Edmonton to complete her education,

Spurvey fell into an abusive relationship. Her mother died

when Spurvey was 26, and a friend introduced her to crack

cocaine as a way to cope with her grief, marking a new low.

Escaping from her abusive relationship and trying to

outrun her addictions, Spurvey eventually relocated to

Camrose, where she joined a church and tried to get involved

in the community. But again, she found herself drawn

towards the underbelly of the small city – every place has

one – and quickly got back into drugs. This time, though,

it was worse. Spurvey got hooked on crystal meth, a drug

notorious for being highly addictive and dangerous. “I just

became a different person,” she says. Spurvey began dealing

meth in order to support her own habit, using local teenagers

to carry her product and selling drugs to them. Even after

a raid on her house, Spurvey continued selling her drugs

until the second raid just a few weeks later. Spurvey, by then

a mother of five, lost her children. “I thought that would be

bottom, but it wasn’t. I was too entrenched in that world,

and I signed my kids over from a jail cell. It was one of the

most difficult things I had to do. I still remember being on

my knees and signing my kids over to child welfare. There was nothing left. I

stayed in that downward spiral for the next year.”

Spurvey was facing three years in prison when her lawyer heard about

the EDTCRC. Based on similar initiatives in the U.S., the EDTCRC is a

restorative justice program that offers addicts who haven’t committed

violent crimes a chance to avoid jail time if they can clean up and stay sober.

Participants are required to receive treatment for their addiction, are subject

to random drug screenings and meet weekly with a judge to talk about their

progress. “I remember the first time I went in front of the judge, and she

asked, ‘How are you?’ It was weird for me, because what kind of judge cares

about how you’re doing?” she says. “And these people here cared about how

I was and wanted to see me do okay.” It was a shock to Spurvey, who wasn’t

used to that kind of care or attention.

we • winter/SPrinG • 2014 wemagazine.Ca 30


After 42 days of in-patient treatment and three months at McDougall

House, a residential treatment facility for women, Spurvey got her kids back.

“When I first got them back, I was paranoid they were going to be taken

away. I woke up four times in the middle of the night that weekend think-

ing they weren’t going to be there. I didn’t think I’d ever have them again,

because I’d lost so much.”

In 2008, Spurvey became one of the first graduates of the Drug Court

program and it marked a time of transition. Without the program, she would

have spent three years in prison and lost custody of her children permanent-

ly. She suspects she would still be an addict. Instead, in 2010, the EDTCRC

approached Spurvey and asked her if she would come back to Drug Court,

this time as a peer support worker. “I was scared, but I was a really proud

that they wanted me to be a part of this

team.” Spurvey was the second Canadian

graduate from a drug court program to be

hired. EDTCRC’s office is located in the

John Howard Society building, familiar to

Edmontonians because of its blue-and-aqua

checkered exterior and the “Giant Transi-

tion” mural on its front, which aptly depicts two friendly giants sharing a

tender moment.

Brad Clark, EDTCRC’s executive director, joined the organization a year

and a half ago and recently selected Spurvey as the new case manager for

Matrix, an intensive outpatient program for recovering addicts. Spurvey is

humbled by her new role, but Clark says she was an obvious choice and that

her personal experience with addiction makes her an invaluable addition

to the treatment team. “She’s able to establish trust with participants a lot

sooner than some of the other professionals on the team. Because we are

probation officers and social workers and nurses, it sometimes takes us a bit

longer.” Despite her lack of previous qualifications and her criminal record,

Clark says that Spurvey is naturally suited to her role and that he’s been

amazed by her professional progress. “The sky is the limit in terms of her

career,” he says.

At work, Spurvey spends her days in group and one-on-one sessions with

participants like Tammy Clark, a current Drug Court participant. Clark, a re-

covering addict who celebrated 10 months of sobriety in November, initially

met Spurvey when she was still a peer support worker and says they bonded

because of their similar backgrounds – they’re both parents who started

taking hard drugs later in life. Clark was one of the first participants to go

through the Matrix program with Spurvey as the case manager, and says

that Spurvey was popular with the entire group. “She calls it like she sees it.

She’s not afraid to call us on our stuff and it’s pretty tough to put one over on

someone who’s been in your shoes. We just loved her.”

It’s a bond that goes both ways. “My clients ask why I don’t go to many

meetings anymore. And I say, ‘Because you are my meetings.’” Spurvey says

it’s her work with the Drug Court and her clients that keeps her accountable

and helps her stay sober despite challenges and hardships. In September,

Spurvey’s granddaughter, Natasha, died just a few weeks short of her fifth

birthday. “My clients were here through that with me.

That’s a teachable moment for them, that you can stay

clean through that.”

Outside of Drug Court, Spurvey balances a stagger-

ing number of commitments. She teaches Empower

U, a financial literacy course, at the Centre to End All

Sexual Exploitation and is a Wellness Recovery Action

Plan facilitator with Alberta Health Services, helping

those with mental health challenges learn to cope with

and recover from emotional trauma or mental illness.

She is also a volunteer speaker for United Way, sharing

her experiences with others and spreading the message

that change and recovery are

possible. “I took a lot from

the community, and I think

it’s empowering to give back

to the community,” she says.

Clark says that whenever

he’s asked to talk about

EDTCRC’s program, he always brings Spurvey with

him. “No matter how much I speak about the program,

it’ll never have the impact of Pamela telling her story,

which is one of perseverance and resilience.”

Spurvey says that the best thing about being sober –

March marks seven years of sobriety for her – is being a

mother again. While her relationship with her children

has at times been difficult, her family has flourished.

Her three oldest children have all graduated from high

school and are in stable, healthy relationships. When she

isn’t working or volunteering, Spurvey is at home with

her two youngest children, her 15-year-old daughter and

seven-year-old son, or spending time with her grand-

children. “My relationship with my family is really the

most important thing to me.”

“I didn’t know how to stay out of chaos,” Pam Spurvey says. “That’s what I knew,

and that’s where I felt I fit in.”


Do you have a story to tell?Has a United Way funded partner agency made

a positive impact in your life, or in the life of

someone you know? Are you a volunteer or

staff member of an agency who can share your

knowledge of the inspiring work happening in the

community? Apply to become a part of United

Way’s engaging volunteer speaker program, and

help us show how fundraising dollars are being

invested to change lives in our community. No

experience is required, training is provided. For

more information please contact United Way.


wemagazine.Ca 32 we • WINTER/SPRING • 2014

The Provincial GovernmenT is Two years into its five-year plan to end child poverty and 10-

year plan to reduce overall poverty in Alberta. Last

November, the Edmonton Social Planning Council,

Public Interest Alberta and the Alberta College of Social

Workers published From Words to Action, Alberta Can

Afford a Real Poverty Reduction Strategy, an update

on the provincial government’s progress, highlighting

recent statistics, areas of challenge and solutions

moving forward. This year will be crucial in determining

the true success of initiatives like the Social Policy

Framework and the Children First Act. Depending on

whether or not they include specific changes, these

initiatives could end up just being statements of

good intention or they could make Alberta a leader in

eliminating child and family poverty. Here are some

top takeaways out of From Words to Action. For the full

report visit edmontonsocialplanning.ca.

AffordAble SolutionSAlberta has the means to reduce poverty; it’s time to turn words into action

one in 10 Alberta

children lives in

poverty. This trend is

decreasing, but not at

a quick enough rate.

What’s most alarming

is that the largest age

demographic of children living in poverty are those under the age of six.

In 2011, Alberta hit a record high where 59.2 per cent of

children in poverty were in a household where one or more

persons had full-time employment.

Formidable Findings:income inequality between the richest and poorest

Alberta families is on the rise. Between 1990 and 2011,

the yearly income of the poorest 10 per cent of Alberta

families increased only marginally while the same

period saw the yearly income of the richest 10 per cent

of families more than double.

More than one in five employed Albertans work for less than $15 per hour, which has been

estimated to be the wage required in Alberta to ensure you have the basic essentials. As of March 2013, 58

per cent of low-wage working Albertans were 25 or older and almost two-thirds of this group were women.



The Alberta Homeless Plan

estimates that $330 million per year is

needed to end homelessness

in the next decade. Housing is

by far the biggest cost for low

and modest-income Albertans.

Affordable rent or homeownership

is a vital homelessness prevention

strategy.

Necessary actioNs:

The number of immigrants and refugees settling in Alberta increased

by 20 per cent in 2013, yet necessary funding for immigrant

settlement and employment programs has remained stagnant.

In total, we need to invest an additional $1 billion each year to

end child poverty. Fortunately, there are funding solutions that can

be explored.

eXPLoriNG soLutioNs:

Secondly, Alberta has the lowest corporate income

tax rate in Canada at only 10 per cent. If

Alberta was to increase this rate to a 12 per cent rate,

we could bring in an additional $1 billion each year.

By making these changes to Alberta’s personal

and corporate income taxes, the Provincial

Government could bring in an additional $1.2

billion to $2 billion per year and still be the

lowest tax jurisdiction in the country.

Secure jobs with decent

pay and benefits are key

to poverty elimination.

Government policies need to

be developed that improve

employment conditions for

low-income workers without

extended benefits, pensions

and job security. Alberta

currently has the lowest

minimum wage in Canada.

= $1 billionThe first is to move Alberta

back to a progressive tax

system used by every other

province. The current flat tax

system means that people with

average amounts of taxable

income are paying more than

in other provinces but people

with larger amounts are paying

less. If individual income

of Albertans making over

$150,000 per year was taxed at

14 per cent, the Province would

bring in an additional $700 million per year.

$700 million



FAMILY VIEWS: When Tina Naqvi-Rota took over the family business, Cameron Developments, she also gladly inherited her family’s giving ways.

They all have different reasons, but giving back is second nature to these female philanthropists

by ScoTT RoLLAnS

Just Do ItP

HO

TO: B

uff

y G

OO

DM

AN


or most people, the term “philanthropist” evokes the image of a wealthy corporate citizen – likely male –

handing over a massive cheque to a cherished personal cause. Fortunately, many business-men do indeed have generous impulses and the occasional massive cheque can achieve a lot of good in this world. But the world of philanthropy has room for everyone, male and female, rich or poor. If you want to do your part to help others, you can always find a way.

Anyone who has dipped a toe into Alberta’s charitable

scene can tell you that many of the hardest working and

influential people in our community are women. They may

not self-identify as philanthropists, but their energy and

generosity suggest otherwise.

They give their time, their

knowledge and – yes – their

money to improve the lives of

those around them.

The Edmonton region has

far too many of these inspiring

women to list in the space of one article, let alone profile.

But let’s meet four of them.

tina naqvi-rota says her charitable habits, like her family’s business, had humble beginnings. Her

father, Javaid Naqvi, came from Pakistan to attend the

University of Alberta on an engineering scholarship. He

met and married his wife, Henrietta, and the two of them

began building their lives virtually from scratch.

“My parents really came from nothing,” says Naqvi-

Rota. “When I was a youngster, we didn’t have a lot of

money. We always had food on the table, but we also always

made sure that we gave to others.”

As the Naqvi family business, Cameron Developments,

grew and prospered, that philosophy remained intact,

Naqvi-Rota says, who now serves as Cameron’s executive

vice-president.

But, it was also important for her to follow her own

philanthropic path. “For example, my personal love is

Catholic Social Services, which I have been involved with

for around 20 years now,” says Naqvi-Rota. She also finds

time to be closely involved with the Autism Society of

Edmonton Area and the Compassion House Foundation,

which runs Sorrentino’s Compassion House for women

with breast cancer.

The Naqvi family also encourages a culture of giving

in the workplace. “Two years ago we started a United

Way staff contribution matching program,” Naqvi-Rota

says. She also lists a string of other causes that Cameron

Developments and its employees support year-round.

Despite being a multitasking parent of three with

a business to run, Naqvi-Rota says she never regrets a

minute spent on her charitable work. “While it is time-

consuming, the reward that you get back from doing it is

so valuable and so uplifting. I would recommend to people

that, even if it’s a minimal amount of your time, or your

dollars, or your ideas, it can still make a huge difference.”

yasmin JivraJ is president of acrodex, a 25-year-old information technology company with its

headquarters in Edmonton and

offices across the country.

As an Ismaili Muslim, Jivraj

explains that philanthropy is

a core value of her faith and

cultural background. “We view

Islam as a thinking, spiritual

faith – one that teaches compassion and tolerance and

that upholds the dignity of man, Allah’s noblest creation,”

she says. “Giving has been a long-standing family and

community tradition; we serve humanity by strengthening

communities.”

For 14 years, Jivraj sat on the board of Aga Khan

Foundation Canada, an international development agency

with projects around the world. More recently, she has

worked with the Aga Khan Ismaili Council for Edmonton,

which focuses on local concerns. “One of the fundamental

things that I find important is involvement in the

community,” she says. “Because the community determines

what its needs are.”

As a successful woman in the male-dominant IT

industry, Jivraj also helps open doors for girls who may

wish to follow a similar path. A decade ago she helped

found Women in Technology, an annual one-day program

aimed at junior high girls. “We bring in really, really

interesting women who are successful in information

technology and show these girls that they can take science

in junior high and high school, and focus in careers in

engineering and IT, because those jobs are for beautiful

women. They’re not just for geeks!”

Initially, it wasn’t an easy sell. “We had to write to

schools and beg them to send three or four Grade 9 girls


My parents really came from nothing. When I was a youngster,

we didn’t have a lot of money.

F



exactly what that’s going to be and yet there always is such

a richness of things that come out of the experience.”

Kollman credits mentors from Edmonton’s business

community for inspiring her to “ just do it.” She also draws

encouragement from Calgary’s Terry Allen, her best friend

for 32 years, who is similarly active in that city’s business

and charitable community. “You

start to hang with a crowd that’s

like-minded,” she observes.

“You become a group of friends

because you’re at the same

events.”

A current member of

United Way of the Alberta

Capital Region’s board of directors, Kollman chaired the

campaign cabinet in 2007 – an experience that she says

opened her eyes. “When you chair a campaign of that

from their school with one teacher,” she recalls. Today, the program has a

waiting list.

Like Tina Naqvi-Rota, Jivraj says she will always find time to contribute

to her charitable interests. In fact, she sees her full schedule as something of

an asset. “Very often, when we look for volunteers, we look for people that are

busy. Because they’re able to drive things forward.”

Bernie Kollman is vice-president for IBM’s public sector division in Alberta – so, not

surprisingly, she too includes Women in Technology

among her favourite causes. “We did that off a shoe-

string – a core group of us,” she recalls. “I’m no longer

the chair, but I was for 10 years.”

Kollman works with a long list of charitable and

business organizations and she offers a simple bit of advice for anyone who

might want to do likewise: “It’s so cliché, but just do it. Get involved. I get more

out of this than I ever contribute,” she says. “When I enter in, I never know

Very often, when we look for volunteers, we look for people that are busy. Because they’re able to

drive things forward.

FAITH-BASED: Yasmine Jivraj’s Islamic beliefs play a large role in her community involvement.

TECH FRIENDLY: Bernie Kollman’s position at IBM opened the doors for many philanthropic endeavors, including her personal favourite Women in Technology.


we • WINTER/SPRING • 2014 37wemagazine.Ca

magnitude, you see the community involvement, and you

see how much energy and effort goes into a campaign

like that, how many volunteers, how many workplace

campaigns, how many bake sales – you name it.”

Although her volunteering sometimes takes time

away from her work and family, Kollman says she enjoys

her own personal support network. “My husband, Brian

McPherson, is very, very supportive. He never complains.

You also need to have an employer who supports a flexible

work arrangement. And I would really like to give IBM

that credit, because they absolutely do.”

That sort of community commitment feels natural to

Kollman. “I come from a small town in Saskatchewan – I

mean, I’m talking small, less-than-100-people small. If

you were going to have a curling rink, or a community hall,

or a volunteer fire department, or a family picnic for the

church, the same people were doing all the work to bring

that community together. My parents were in the heart

and soul of it, for the whole time I was growing up and

many years beyond.”

InterestIngly, Maureen Mccaw also traces her philanthropy back to its prairie roots. “I grew up in a

small town in Saskatchewan, with lovely values of vol-

unteering and giving. It was just the core philosophy of

everybody around. It’s what everybody did.”

Later, as a parent, McCaw carried that philosophy

forward. “My poor son, from the time he was little, always

knew that when he got any kind of cash present, no matter

the amount, he had to put a third into spending, a third

into saving and a third into charity.”

Since selling her business, Criterion Research, in 2005,

McCaw has had more time to work with not-for-profit

organizations. For her, giving has always started with

service. “My first desire to give back was with my time and

my skills and my commitment to support organizations,”

she says. “That has been my pattern and habit.”

Of course, McCaw is also in the position to contribute

financially. “All of those organizations that we give

our time to, that we give our hearts to, tend to be

organizations that we inevitably choose to support

with our pocketbooks as well,” she says. “We know

the mandates and the vision and mission of those

organizations. We see the tremendous effort and effective

work that’s being done by committed people.”

Among her favourite causes, McCaw lists the Citadel,

the Royal Alexandra Hospital and the Nature Conservancy

of Canada. She’s also particularly excited about Women

Building Futures, a program that helps women find

training and employment in the trades.

The secret to a giving society, McCaw says, is for

everybody to pitch in where they can, the way her

childhood neighbours did. “It wasn’t about grand, big

gifts. It was about everybody doing what they could, in the

way that they could. And it still is about that.” Of course

organizations welcome the opportunity, when somebody

can, to have wonderfully generous, large gifts. But, by

the same token, what really matters is everybody doing

everything they can.

“An example of that is the CBC Turkey Drive,” she says.

“They have a half-a-million-dollar goal to collect money

for the food bank. And it’s all small gifts from children,

from families and from competitive businesses. It’s a

wonderful example of giving, why it matters and just how

great it feels.”

DOWN HOME: Maureen McCaw attributes her philanthropic outlook to her small-town upbringing.



SPONSOR PROFILE

EPCOR is approaching a monetary milestone for its United Way campaigns, but the company’s community involvement goes

deeper than financial support

by JORdaN Wilkins

government affairs. “As in any community, we all deal with the same issues and chal-lenges and one of the larger ones is poverty. Poverty can be very insidious and lead to even more challenges. As a company, we pride ourselves as being more than an em-ployer of people; we’re a part of the commu-nity that works to provide solutions.”

I f you were to focus on numbers alone, there’s no question how large a role EPCOR has played throughout the history of United Way of the Alberta Capital Region.

EPCOR’s support actually predates its current name, go-ing back two decades to 1993. Over that time, the company has donated nearly $5 million to United Way. “EPCOR is a major business in Edmonton and is also a big part of the community,” says Brian Gerdes, director of public and

More than Money

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sERViCE PiOnEERs: EPCOR funded the alberta Capital Region’s pilot poverty simulation. There are plans to hold an all-EPCOR simulation in 2014.


the call centre. Gerdes says these employees are great and are

trained to help any vulnerable customers by referring them

to organizations that can help. But, in the name of employee

involvement, having this group participate in a poverty simu-

lation will help create a better understanding of what some

people in the community go through. “The simulation creates

empathy for people in these situations,” he explains. “When

they’re on the other end of the line and behind on the bills,

that’s a frustrating time for them. By having even more compas-

sion, our call centre will be better at taking a little extra time

to figure out arrangements that might make the next month a

little easier.”

EPCOR understands these challenges because of its involve-

ment in the community. In

2011, the company took that

involvement to the next level by

creating the EPCOR Communi-

ty Essentials Council. Through

this endeavour the company has

given out grants totalling around $400,000 each year (over and

above its United Way campaigns) to approximately 60 differ-

ent organizations in the community. In its short history, the

EPCOR Community Essentials Council has already surpassed

$1 million in grants.

Youth Empowerment and Support Services (YESS) is one

organization the EPCOR Community Essentials Council

regularly supports. Deb Cautley, executive director of YESS,

says EPCOR plays a vital role each year in YESS campaigns.

In particular, EPCOR’s recent support helped establish the

organization’s new wraparound support service that surrounds

youth with an entire team at YESS to help them along their

way. “Because of EPCOR’s vision, our vision has become a

reality,” Cautley says.

Any of the organizations that receive grants from the EPCOR

Community Essentials Council know first-hand the company’s

active involvement, but this attitude isn’t isolated to external

groups. In addition to matching employee donations for vari-

ous campaigns throughout the year, EPCOR places a strong

emphasis on rewarding its volunteer-friendly employees. When

any employee volunteers three hours of time, EPCOR will

grant $300 on their behalf to a non-profit organization of their

choice. To Gerdes, this is a prime example of EPCOR’s dual role

of giving back to the community both financially and person-

ally. “The money is one thing, but when you’re engaged on the

ground level, and you see the need yourself, you really under-

stand the value of each contribution,” he says. “In so many ways

that is greater than a simple donation.”

39wemagazine.Ca

The $5 million lifetime total is an impressive milestone that

the company hopes to hit early 2014, on the tail of its most

successful year ever (in 2013, EPCOR donated $322,855 to

United Way), but according to Gerdes, monetary donations are

great, but active employee engagement is just as important. This

philosophy played a large role in creating the theme for EPCOR’s

2013 United Way campaign. To kick-off “Poverty Socks,”

each EPCOR employee was given a pair of socks and asked to

consider what life might be like if the things most of us take for

granted, like a new pair of socks, were a privilege. The campaign

was EPCOR’s most successful to date. At the end of the year,

because no EPCOR employee was in need of socks, every last

pair was donated to the Bissell Centre’s temporary Thrift

Shoppe after the shop’s original

location was devastated by a

fire that destroyed most of its

stock (see Leading Edge on

page 41 for more information).

“The Bissell Centre was

obviously in a time of challenge,” Gerdes recalls, “so we wanted

to help any way we could.”

EPCOR’s dedication to ending poverty is apparent in its sup-

port of United Way but also in the many programs and initia-

tives the company funds. EPCOR sponsored the pilot poverty

simulation a couple of years ago at the Royal Glenora Club and

Gerdes was adamant that he, too, participate. “I came in and

found out that Dr. Bob Westbury was assigned as my child,” he

recalls. Gerdes says he felt well-prepared for the simulation but

it didn’t take long before the jovial attitude among participants

turned serious once everyone began realizing just what they

were up against. “Not long after you start, things are already out

of control,” he says. “You then look for some rules, but there are

none. As you move through the simulation, everything becomes

increasingly stressful and increasingly real.”

The challenges that can arise during a typical poverty simula-

tion are seemingly endless, Gerdes says, and he admits he hadn’t

even considered most of them beforehand. These challenges

begin to compound on one another and participants are forced

to make difficult tradeoffs like keeping the heat on or paying for

their children’s field trips. “It becomes clear that poverty is a lot

more complicated than most of us understand, and this was just

a simulation,” Gerdes says. “Many people had tears in their eyes

when the simulation ended, and that was after only two hours.

It was incredibly eye-opening and it’s something I wish every

EPCOR employee could do.”

He says there are ongoing discussions to hold an all-EPCOR

poverty simulation, particularly for employees who work in

We pride ourselves as being more than an employer of people,” says EPCOR’s Brian Gerdes. “We’re a part of the community.



by Cory Schachtel

For the last 11 years, a partnership between United Way and

Lilydale, A Sofina Foods Company,

has developed into an ever-changing

campaign to fight poverty. Lilydale’s

initial relationship with United Way

was limited to a matched, dollar for

dollar, employee payroll deduction

program. But, while this approach

was effective, the company saw

greater potential. Today Lilydale

runs a dedicated two-week campaign

focused on employee pledges and

numerous special events specific to

its industry. In other words, some of

the best tasting cook-offs you can

imagine. This increased effort has al-

lowed Lilydale to raise over $163,000

in the last four years alone. Stephanie

Gillis-Paulgaard, Sofina’s director

of corporate communications and

public relations, sits on the internal

campaign committee and is proud of

Lilydale’s recent success, attributing

it to an increased preparation period

each year.

“We start things off with a big

kick-off event bringing in some

speakers at all four of our locations

to really bring awareness to United

Way and how every dollar truly

makes a difference,” Gillis-Paulgaard

explains. In recent years, Lilydale

has continued its efforts beyond just

the campaign as the company tries

to hold Days of Caring once a month

where employees volunteer their

time and skills to different United

Way funded agencies like the Ed-

monton Food Bank. “Days of Caring

are critical,” she says. “Once people

have the opportunity to experience

them, the impact is immediate and

they share their experience.”

In the midst of these Days of Caring,

the prep period for the upcoming cam-

paign is never far from employees’

thoughts. Planning for the two-week

campaign begins six months prior and

starts with a de-briefing of the previ-

ous year’s campaign, as well as the

introduction of new faces and ideas,

to keep everything fresh. Gillis-Paul-

gaard says it’s vital to bring in new

members on the committee to broad-

en the scope of the campaign and to

increase the number of ambassadors

within the company.

To overcome its industry-related

boom period between the two major

turkey-related holidays, Lilydale

runs its campaign near the end of

October. This sweet spot allows

the company to get the most from

its employees from a philanthropic

viewpoint without having to inter-

fere with the business end of

things. “We obviously get really

busy during the festive times,”

Gillis-Paulgaard says. “During this

period, right after Thanksgiving,

we can build-in special events that

allow for more employee participa-

tion. Everyone is well rested after

Thanksgiving, and we wrap things

up with a Halloween pizza and

costume party, right before our

Christmas season begins.”

It’s the generous spirit of employ-

ees, along with Lilydale’s campaign

strategy of constant change, that

has bolstered its relationship with

United Way. Gillis-Paulgaard says

that since Sofina Foods took over

in 2009, philanthropic commitment

remains strong. “Sofina is commit-

ted to giving back to our communi-

ties where we live and work, it’s

part of our blueprint and how we

do business,” Gillis-Paulgaard says.

“When you’ve been doing a cam-

paign like this for 11 years, you want

people to be energized by what can

be done and not just think ‘Oh, not

this again.’ We try to keep it fun and

educational.”

Keeping campaigns innovative

and fresh has worked for Lilydale,

and United Way is thankful for the

work that the company and its

employees do each year. Gillis-

Paulgaard says that she’s just

honoured to be part of a group

that’s committed to changing the

community for the better. “We

may not raise millions each year,

like some large companies, but if

everyone can just do a little bit,

it truly has an impact,” she says.

“You can come away knowing

you made a difference and at

the end of the day, that’s a really

good feeling.”

The recipe for the successful relationship between Lilydale and United Way is continuously evolving

Secret Ingredients

BUSINESS WAY


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hen you’re an organization committed to serving the community, every dollar is earmarked,

often long before it comes in, and every staff member

and volunteer has a job (or several) to do. When disaster strikes,

rising from the ashes to begin again with limited resources can be a

long process – if it’s even possible at all. Edmonton’s Bissell Centre

faced that challenge after fire broke out at its Thrift Shoppe and, in

an incredible demonstration of resiliency, got the shop up and run-

ning again in just three months.

Every month, 6,000 to 7,000 people visit the 50-year-old Thrift

Shoppe, buying clothes, books, household and personal care items

and more, at extremely low prices. Most of them rely on the store to

help them meet their basic needs so they can stretch their money as

far as possible.

“Our mission is to help people move from poverty to prosperity,

and the Thrift Shoppe is an important service that we offer to help

people manage limited funds,” explains Mark Holmgren, CEO, Bissell

Centre. “Rather than throwing things away, businesses have an out-

let for extra stock, and we turn that into an opportunity for people to

buy quality goods at low prices.”

In spite of being one of the lowest-priced thrift stores in town, the

Thrift Shoppe produces a small surplus, which is used to fund a free

clothing outlet downtown. When that’s taken care of, any additional

surplus is injected into other Bissell Centre programs.

On Monday, September 2, a fire destroyed all of the shop’s stock

and caused an estimated $900,000 in structural and smoke dam-

age. The facility needs extensive work to re-open, which isn’t sched-

uled to happen until around the end of March 2014. But knowing how

important the Thrift Shoppe is to the community, Bissell Centre staff

and board members decided not to wait until spring to operate the

store again.

“The next day we met to discuss whose jobs would change and

who would be leading what, in order to start looking for a temporary

facility,” says Holmgren. They needed to find a suitable building in

the same general area because transportation can be an issue for

the shop’s main clientele. But that was just one job. “We had lost

Rise fRom the Ashes

W

The Bissell Centre bounces back to re-open Thrift Shoppe in record time

by Tricia Radison


every bit of stock so we needed to figure out how we were going to

work with the community to restock and then sort and price cloth-

ing and household items.”

The core team on the massive project consisted of Holmgren and

the centre’s chief operating officer, chief financial officer, executive

assistant, in-kind coordinator and Thrift Shoppe manager. They

divided up the tasks and got down to work.

Getting the word out quickly was important. The Bissell Centre

reached out to the media, the City of Edmonton, existing funders

and, through social media, the public. Donations began pouring in,

with companies of all sizes contributing as well as individuals and

faith communities. Some collected whatever they could; others

focused on something specific, like EPCOR, which did a United Way

campaign called Poverty Socks and donated 2,000 pairs of socks.

“Demand for socks is constant and we can’t sell used socks,”

says Holmgren. “The 2,000 pairs will likely last us through the

winter. There’s enough socks that we can give a pair to someone

when we see a need.”

Assistance also came in the form of recommendations for prop-

erties to look at, which helped the team identify a suitable property

within a month. On December 2, the Thrift Shoppe opened again

to continue serving those who need it most. A disastrous situation

was alleviated because of the Bissell Centre’s strong network in

the community and while it will still be some time until the Thrift

Shoppe has a permanent residence, the store is stocked up and

socked up to get through Edmonton’s winter.

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LEADING EDGE


Two years ago, a collaborative effort aimed at

increasing financial literacy among

women living in poverty began in the

Alberta Capital Region. The Empower

U program started in 2012 when seven

agencies that previously held indi-

vidual funding support systems came

together on the idea that financial-

management skills are just as impor-

tant as monetary assistance to women

in poverty.

In the two years since the program’s

inception, nearly 400 women in the

region have gone through Empower

U’s financial literacy classes, improv-

ing their ability to be more comfort-

able with their financial decisions.

“It’s been an excellent starting point

for women to take steps toward lift-

ing themselves out of poverty,” says

Joanne Currie, director of financial

stability and independence at United

Way of the Alberta Capital Region.

“I know a lot of women are more self-

assured with their money now.”

But as important as these finan-

cial skills are, Currie says Empower

U also gives women a sense of hope

moving forward as well as a feeling of

belonging within the community. In

the program’s first year, 84 per cent

of participants indicated increased

self-esteem and 87 per cent said they

had improved their self-confidence.

An overwhelming 92 per cent said

they are more confident when it

comes to money and the majority left

the program more hopeful about life

overall. Currie anticipates even better

numbers for the next three years.

Empower U is more than just an

educational program. It also includes

a matched-savings component. While

in the program, women start saving

for an asset specific to their educa-

tion, employability or quality of life. At

the end of the program, what they’ve

saved is then matched two-to-one

by the program’s funders. Nearly

$25,000 was saved in the program’s

first year alone, which resulted in a

total of around $75,000 used to pur-

chase life-changing assets. Nearly one-

third of the women bought computers.

Many used the savings for household

appliances, furniture, tuition, financial

investments and items as simple as

beds for their families. For its third

year, Empower U has added new part-

ners to help participants get the most

from their savings. Retail outlets like

London Drugs, Staples, Sleep Country

and The Brick are making it easier for

Empower U participants to purchase

assets. “We’ve had a lot of great

partners help make this program what

it is today,” Currie says. “The first two

years have gone great, and I’m sure

the next few will be even better.”

To learn more about joining an

Empower U group visit:

empoweru.ca.

The Empower U program celebrates two years of assisting women in poverty to build their money management skills and assets for a stronger future

Financial Power

MILESTONES

42 we • WINTER/SPRING • 2014 wemagazine.ca

by MarTIN Dover

STroNG SUPPorT: Funders for Empower U include EPCOr, aTB Financial, Edmonton Community Foundation, The Stollery Charitable Foundation, United Way of the alberta Capital region, alberta Capital Market Foundation, Junior League of Edmonton, the Government of alberta and the City of Edmonton.

“The class has changed my life, not

just financially, but also in looking at

the rest of my life. I am finding more

balance in my home and personal

life and I am starting to see the small

steps.” – Empower U participant

“The program restored my faith

that there are people in the

community who care about women

like us. That really helps with

building my self-esteem.”

- Empower U participant

By investing in our community, your donation changes lives and builds pathways out of poverty.

Your donation helps to break the cycle of poverty in our community, once and for all.

Donate today at myunitedway.ca

000WE-UnitedWay-FP.indd 1 1/14/14 1:23:57 PM

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By investing in our community, your donation changes lives and builds pathways out of poverty.

Your donation helps to break the cycle of poverty in our community, once and for all.

Donate today at myunitedway.ca

000WE-UnitedWay-FP.indd 1 1/14/14 1:23:57 PMWE_p42-43_Winter14.indd 43 1/20/14 8:24:07 AM

THIS ISSUE OF WE MAGAZINE IS GENEROUSLY SPONSORED BY EPCOR

Pam Spurvey’s story is one of heartbreak and recovery

The Way Forward

Renewed Energy

Redemption Song

000WE-Epcor-FP.indd 1 1/10/14 8:53:13 AMWE_p44-01_Winter14.indd 44 1/20/14 8:24:39 AM

we winter 2014

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