A low-income housing project in southeast Calgary is set to benefit from the fundraising efforts of the participants in the Coldest Night of the Year charity walk.
Acadia Place, a 58-unit complex located on Heritage Dr. S.E. which opened in 2009, will receive some of the proceeds from the Saturday, February 21 event which aims to bring an end to homelessness.
Accommodation at Acadia Place is limited to people living below the poverty line including the city’s homeless. Rental fees are subsidized and tenants have access to an onsite resource centre which allows the development of life skills.
The Calgary Urban Project Society (CUPS) is one of the local agencies which refer people to Acadia Place. Amanda St. Laurent, CUPS Community Development Program Manager, says the tenant-led programs help create a safe, familiar environment.
“For a lot of folks who've experienced homelessness their lives have been quite transient, in and out of shelters, and there's a strong sense of social isolation as well as pushback from the community,” explains St. Laurent. “What we try to do first and foremost is bring people together and form that strong sense of community.”
Jody Graves resides at Acadia Place with her four children. Graves and the other residents have launched a brown bag meal program where tenants gather to put together to create school lunches for their children.
“I love it,” said Graves. “I like the community and being able to rely on the people in your own neighbourhood.”
For more information on the fundraising walk, visit Coldest Night of the Year
