Some of the Housing First workers in Wood's Homes' new office. (Lethbridge News Now)

By David Opinko

Wood’s Homes Lethbridge expands to connect youth with permanent housing & work

Oct 16, 2019 | 12:56 PM

LETHBRIDGE, AB – Wood’s Homes has been operating in Lethbridge for several years to help at-risk youths and young adults find a place to temporarily stay and find support. Now, however, they hope to do more than just that.

The group opened their expanded office in July, called Housing First, next to their current location at 312 3 Street South.

Program Manager Shauna Cohen explains what the Housing First workers do in the new office.

“When young kids come to us for Housing First support, we assess the situation, we determine whether they are in need of helping them to find financial security. That might be employment, it might be connecting them with government services or income supports. We help them find housing, and once they’re housed, we connect them with all kinds of health services.”

Between all of their programs, they help around 300 people every year between the ages of 16 and 24.

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In 2018-2019, 70 people accessed their shelter, including 31 males, 37 females, and two who are trans. The average person using the shelter was 16 years old.

The goal, says Cohen, is to ensure everyone has long term and stable housing and employment.

“We definitely look for landlords to partner with, so if you have a unit available or you have some sort of housing option, you can definitely contact us. It’s always great to work with people who see the need and understand some of the challenges young people are facing in our community.”

In terms of employment, Wood’s Homes can work with people on putting resumes together, help them find good clothes so they can go to job interviews, and help them to figure out what kinds of work might be well-suited to them.

Cohen says each case is unique and the people they help come from all sorts of backgrounds but there are some issues that are more common than others.

“I think what we’re seeing in the community is a lot of challenges in regards to the opioid crisis, and with that, there’s homelessness issues, there’s issues with affordable housing, finding employment, all of those kinds of things.”

All donations given to Wood’s Homes Lethbridge stays in the community and in local programs.

The group will be holding their annual Children’s Benefit Gala on March 28th, 2020 at the Coast Lethbridge Hotel.