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Veteran's House

OTTAWA | TUES.,NOV.3, 2020

 

This morning (Tuesday, Nov 3, 2020) Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson (on behalf of the Multifaith Housing Initiative Project) launched the #WeSaluteYourService Challenge for Veterans’ House Ottawa.

 

https://www.multifaithhousing.ca/veterans-house.html

 

Veterans’ House FAQ.

 

What is Veterans’ House: the Andy Carswell Building?

 

Veterans’ House: the Andy Carswell Building is a housing community for veterans (of the CAF or the RCMP), either male or female, who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless.  The facility is located on Mikinak Road, on the former Rockcliffe Airbase. It offers mental health and addiction services; gathering spaces (including a communal kitchen and outdoor barbeque, and indoor gym, and a dog park for service dogs.  It will be the fifth affordable housing project of the Multifaith Housing Initiative (MHI) - an Ottawa-based charitable not-for-profit that provides affordable housing to those in need.  It will be MHI’s first project dedicated to housing veterans.

 

What is the Multifaith Housing Initiative (MHI)

 

MHI is an Ottawa-based registered charity that provides and promotes safe, affordable, and well-maintained housing in inclusive communities and mobilizes resources for these purposes.  MHI was established in 2002 after religious leaders in the broader Ottawa region realized that the city suffered from a significant shortage of affordable housing, then teamed up to try to address the problem.  Today, MHI’s membership consists of approximately 80 faith groups, including congregations from the Baha’i, Christian, Hindu, Jewish, Muslim, and Unitarian communities.  The initiative currently has 139 rental units that house between 300 and 400 residents at any given time.  MHI has four affordable housing sites:  Kent House / Centretown, Blake House / Vanier, Somerset Gardens/Centretown (MHI owns 10 condo units there), and the Haven, located in Barrhaven.  For more info about MHI, visit MHI’s main FAQ page. https://www.multifaithhousing.ca/faq.html

 

How is Veterans’ House different from MHI’s previous projects?

 

First; it is exclusively for veterans and, secondly, it is a supportive housing initiative offering tailored counselling, mental health services, etc., for the veterans’ community.

 

Who partners with MHI on Veterans’ House?

 

  • Canadian Forces Morale & Welfare Services;

  • Government of Canada Helmets to Hardhats;

  • Veterans Affairs Canada;

  • Ottawa Salus (Salus is a Latin word meaning “health and wellness, and Ottawa Salus is a registered Ottawa-based charity contributing to supportive housing, mental health services, and other forms of support to adults living with serious mental illness, in the Ottawa area);

  • Royal Canadian Legion, Ontario Command & District G;

  • Soldiers Helping Soldiers;

  • Support Ourt Troops; and

  • True Patriot Love

 

How do prospective applicants apply?

 

MHI works with partners identified above to maintain an efficient, effective, and fair identification, prioritization, and intake process.  To apply, prospective tenants will have to complete the following forms and follow the instructions provided:

 

 

 

 

If assistance is required to fill out the form/print documents, please set up an appointment with either Multifaith Housing Initiative (613-686-1825 or housing.manager@multifaithhousing.ca) or the Social Housing Registry of Ottawa (613-526-2088).

 

Statistics about Homeless veterans, in Ottawa:

 

  • The majority of homeless veterans are English speaking (79%) and male (92%);

  • 67 % of homeless veterans completed high school and have at least some post-secondary education;

  • homeless veterans are more likely to suffer from mental illness;

  • Substance abuse is a common challenge for homeless veterans who suffer from PTSD and / or anxiety disorders;

  • Homeless military veterans are more than twice as likely to be a victim of a crime compared to other homeless persons;

  • Homeless veterans tend to believe in peer support.

 

MHI typically hosts three annual events per year, as follows:

 

  • An Annual General Meeting (which was most recently held on Sept 13, 2020;

  • A “Tulipathon” fund raiser (information available online); and

  • A National Housing Day ceremony;

 

Donations may be made to the Veterans’ House Capital Campaign:

 (https://www.multifaithhousing.ca/give-to-veterans-house.html).

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Volunteer Services May be offered to MHI and Veterans’ House to support the following, and more:

 

  • Fundraising

  • Community outreach

  • Help during a special event

  • Speaking or promotional events (schools, etc.)

  • Data input

  • Writing and editing

  • Translation (mainly English to French)

  • Data gathering and analysis

  • Administration

  • IT

  • Maintenance tasks (painting, clean-ups, minor repairs)
     

Volunteer application forms are available at https://www.multifaithhousing.ca/volunteer.html

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