On Tuesday, June 27th, 2017, Calgary Homeless Foundation (CHF) hosted our Annual General Meeting (AGM) and released our 2017 Report on Progress and our Management’s Discussion & Analysis and Financial Statements.
Diana Krecsy, CHF President and CEO and Cameron Bailey, CHF Board Chair, spoke to homeless-serving sector representatives, members of the public, and individuals with lived experience of homelessness. Celebrating the successes of CHF, Krecsy and Bailey also congratulated the successes of the 115 agencies working in Calgary’s Homeless-Serving Sector. Since 2008, Calgary’s Homeless-Serving System of Care and the individuals who are committed to our shared vision of ending homelessness have housed over 8,400 individuals and added over 480 permanent supportive housing units to the sector – while maintaining a client/resident housing stability rate of 92%. Overall, Calgary is on track to house 10,000 individuals by the end of December 2018.
10 years and 10,000 people. That’s something we can all be proud of.
CHF’s 2017 Report on Progress highlights Fiscal Year 2016/2017 and outlines key achievements, strategic directions for the upcoming year, treasurer’s report and statement of operations, along with a special thank you to our valued donors and sponsors who empower us to end the experience of homelessness for many.
Our new Report on Progress features our recently designed Strategic Circle of Impact, which represents the four pillars of our work: Research and Data; Community Mobilization; Public and Political Will; and Funder of Outcomes and Impact. Through these four pillars, we have prioritized our Strategic Directives to better focus our efforts on helping more people find their way home.
Over the past fiscal year, CHF focused on:
- Improving internal CHF operations and capacities
- Enhancing CHF role as system planner and increase agency engagement in aligned mission activities
- Transitioning our entire housing portfolio to HomeSpace Society (formerly Calgary Community Land Trust)
- Leading in Collective Ownership and Impact
Highlights from CHF’s Fiscal 2016/2017 year include:
- 916 people were placed in housing, bringing the community total to 8,482.
- Providing 2,189 housing spaces with support. 1,540 were singles, 433 families and 216 youth.
- Providing funding for 55 programs in 26 agencies within Calgary’s Homeless-Serving System of Care.
- The opening of Aurora in the Park, CHF’s second purpose built affordable housing building through the RESOLVE Campaign. The property is owned and operated by HomeSpace Society which took over CHF’s housing portfolio in 2016.
- Training 1,195 front-line staff to increase skill levels in the Homeless-Serving Sector.
- The introduction of new Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to ensure performance measurements contribute to an enhanced, and ever improving, homeless-serving system of care.
- Bringing 98 community programs online utilizing the Homeless Management Information System (HMIS).
Our Report on Progress also outlines our next steps and strategic directions for the upcoming year. These are to continue to enhance and improve our internal operations and capabilities; foster community service networks, collaborations and partnerships; and orient ourselves around our commitment to the three objectives as set out by community as collective goals to meet before the end of December 2018.
Another very important part of CHF’s strategy for Fiscal 2017/2018 is working in concert with the Indigenous community and in incorporating an Indigenous lens throughout all of our work. We know that 34% of individuals experiencing homeless in Calgary are Indigenous, and they are a priority. We are focused on funding programs and services to best serve their needs, as well as working hard with Indigenous members of community to best recognize how to honor their wisdom and worldview within all of the work that we do. This is crucial in our efforts to end homelessness in our city.
As a participating agency in the I Heart Home community initiative, we work hard to ensure the success of Calgary’s Homeless-Serving System of Care. We lend our support and empower our community’s agencies and front-line workers by telling their stories and supplying them with real-world tools to assist them in their social media and communications efforts. We also encourage and facilitate many high-level activities and partnerships such as the Calgary Recovery Services Task Force and the newly refreshed Calgary Youth Plan to End Homelessness.
We look forward to the year ahead with hopeful and determined eyes. Together, we have done so much, and we know collectively we can do even more!
We are clearly dedicated to our mission of ending the experience of homelessness for Calgary’s most vulnerable.
