Rainbow Lodge

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=90 BGCOLOR="#006699" TEXT="#080000" background="b02fd5a3.jpg"> <div> <FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" ><B>Metis Calgary Family Services Society</B></FONT><B>    </B><B> |     </B><A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Metis Calgary Family Services Society"><U><B>home</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id20.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Our current Programs"><U>Our current Programs</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id18.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="About us..."><U>About us...</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id379.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Logic Model"><U>Logic Model</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id169.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="News Views"><U>News & Views</U></A>   |   <B>Rainbow Lodge</B>   |   <A HREF="id196.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Programs"><U>Programs</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id370.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Press release Parent Link"><U>Press release Parent Link</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id542.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Outcomes"><U>Outcomes</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id383.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Little Sundance"><U>Little Sundance</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id429.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Accredited"><U>Accredited</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id26.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Contact Us"><U>Contact Us</U></A></div> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" width=210 BGCOLOR="#FFCC66" TEXT="#080000" background="b03d2b03.jpg"> <bR> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id420.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Rainbow Lodge article Calgary Herald 200"><U>Rainbow Lodge article Calgary Herald 2006 </U></A></div> <bR> <div> Child care for Aboriginal Children living off reserve link</div> <div> <B>http://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/11-008-x/2010002/article/11344-eng.htm</B></div> <bR> <bR> </td> <td valign="top" height=390 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <I>Rainbow Lodge</I></div> <div> <B>Homelessness; fact or fiction.</B><B> <A NAME="rainbow_lodge_story"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="1" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="1" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" ></A></B></div> <div> 200 years ago, homelessness did not exist in North America. Tonight in Calgary Alberta,</div> <div> over (fifteen hundred) 1500 people are homeless. On average, (Sixty) 60 families will be</div> <div> forced to rely on temporary shelter in the basement of a church, having been transported</div> <div> there with their children for the night, only to be turned back to the street again the</div> <div> following day as the churches are only able to provide shelter, nothing more. Those lucky</div> <div> enough, will have their children bussed from which ever church they spent the night, to a</div> <div> community designated school. And once again mom, or dad will have to enlist their</div> <div> survival skills all over again, just to make sure they get a church placement the next</div> <div> night, and the next, and the next, the scene repeats itself again and again, all over Canada.</div> <div> Sounds like a script to the latest reality TV show. Well its reality all right but its no TV</div> <div> show.</div> <div> The equation as to what exactly causes homelessness is not precisely known. We do</div> <div> know that children and families are affected. We also know that often it is a cycle. We</div> <div> also know that there are ways to break the cycle. It is a very complex condition that</div> <div> affects all of society, not just those in the church basements. Why are we so different 200</div> <div> years later when in fact we are suppose to have achieved so much as human beings, as</div> <div> civilization, what, with social justice, economic growth, equal rights, charters,</div> <div> constitutions, treaties, memorandums of understanding, protocols, the list go on. For us</div> <div> the answer is…</div> <bR> <div> <B>Community; A context of relationships</B></div> <div> We have born witness to a seed of hope, one that is planted firmly in community, and</div> <div> culture. In actual fact we believe that community and culture are symbiotic one should</div> <div> not exist separated from the other. What does that mean exactly? Well it acknowledges</div> <div> the obvious difference between 200 years ago and today. It recognizes that we need each</div> <div> other to flourish, we as a people, must engage ourselves with authenticity and direction,</div> <div> with pride and a sense of what we want and need in our society, basically who we are.</div> <div> This occurred quite naturally 200 years ago, when everyone in a community knew they</div> <div> were in a community in every sense of the word, each with their defined role and worth</div> <div> to the collective community, culturally as well. Today, many of those who we call</div> <div> homeless, have had little sense of a constructive community. That world of homelessness</div> <div> is based on daily survival, with little room for flourishing, and nurturing relationships.</div> <div> Rainbow Lodge recaptures what community is really all about. It embraces, leads,</div> <div> teaches, loves and inspires. Parents are allowed to parent, children are allowed to be</div> <div> children, neighbors are allowed to be, well neighborly, among all this a sense of well</div> <div> being, a sense of belonging, a sense of pride in who we are as people, as humans</div> <div> emerges. Ultimately that seed of hope grows to a strong sense of home. A sense of home</div> <div> that isn't there because of bricks and mortar, but rather one that’s there because of our</div> <div> reconnection with each other in a nurturing and supported environment, partners in</div> <div> society. The tools that we yield from this environment are ones that we take with us no</div> <div> matter where we go. We pass these tools along to our children as well, leaving a positive</div> <div> legacy with them.</div> <bR> <div> Rainbow Lodge is a nurtured living environment featuring 32, three bedroom homes that</div> <div> become available to families for two years as transitional housing. This occurs with</div> <div> social supports, community development activities, as well as a very strong inter</div> <div> organization working spirit. The neighborhood schools, community associations,</div> <div> businesses, and service providers all participate in creating a welcoming and supportive</div> <div> environment. Three social service agencies are key elements of Rainbow Lodge with</div> <div> Metis Calgary Family Services as the lead and fiscal agency. Aspen Family and</div> <div> Community Services as well as Inn From the Cold make up the balance of the team</div> <div> supporting programming and governance. The 3.1 million dollar property was purchased</div> <div> with a collaborative effort by the Calgary Homeless Foundation, drawing financial</div> <div> support from three levels of government and private donors. The ongoing “value added”</div> <div> programming for the families in Rainbow Lodge is supported by the United Way of</div> <div> Calgary and Western Economic Diversification</div> <div> The project has been two years in planning and recently used CMHC funding to renovate</div> <div> and upgrade the 32 units at a cost of over 3/4 of a million dollars. This project has</div> <div> attracted the interest of national television (aired this fall on Global Television) as well as</div> <div> an Australian Aboriginal Affairs Minister seeking solutions for themselves. The fact that</div> <div> we had such early support in place allowed us to approach additional funders. United</div> <div> Way stepped up to the plate in the early going as well. It became a much diversified list</div> <div> of contributors supporting the project overtime, and that in itself poised a great deal of</div> <div> effort just to coordinate. Regionally the Metis Nation of Alberta provided strong</div> <div> community support and opened doors that let us through. Early dollars allowed us to</div> <div> coordinate and support our own capacity building, as the project grew to include many</div> <div> more pieces than anyone originally conceptualized.</div> <div> The City of Calgary played a major role in spearheading the connection of the three</div> <div> partners, Aspen Family and Community Services, Inn from The Cold, and Metis Calgary</div> <div> Family Services. And with Metis Calgary being chosen as the lead agency, Rainbow</div> <div> Lodge became one of the largest projects of this type in Canada, with an Aboriginal</div> <div> organization at the helm.</div> <div> Rainbow Lodge will offer an opportunity for families to deal with barriers to affordable</div> <div> housing, access community resources as well as encourage families to develop those</div> <div> resources that they need themselves. We call this community capital. We know this is a</div> <div> good investment, with long term dividends.</div> <div> Families that are culturally and socially disenfranchised now have a caring and sharing</div> <div> spectrum of services that works with them based on respect and non judgment. Over the</div> <div> course of two years, the family unit becomes reactivated in a vibrant community, where</div> <div> they in turn can look over and help their new neighbor, fresh off the street.</div> <bR> <div> Mark Laycock.</div> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>