Every year on National Housing Day, housing providers go to Queen’s Park and talk to our elected representatives about the urgent need for housing. But something EHM deeply values, is helping to amplify the voice of those whose lives are directly affected by the housing and homelessness crisis. We created opportunities for people who rely on the Drop-In, and for …
Stronger Together: How Housing Providers are Using Mergers and Amalgamations to Save Money and Improve Quality of Life for Tenants
This year, EHM’s Executive Director, Ainsley Chapman, was a panelist at the Ontario Non-profit Housing Association’s annual provincial conference. In the session titled “Dating, Cohabitating and Marriage: The Three Stages of Amalgamation”, Ainsley Chapman shared learnings from EHM’s amalgamation with Portland Place. Why are amalgamations being discussed so often? During the 1990s, governments were investing heavily in housing – giving …
Announcing EHM’s New Vision, Mission, and Values!
By Ainsley Chapman As we approach National Housing Day, November 22nd, EHM is thrilled to share our new Vision, Mission, and Values! Since 2019, the EHM Board has been working hard to understand where EHM can have the biggest impact and meet the most community urgent needs. Just as we have responded to social and economic crises throughout two world …
Reimagining Church Properties
By Karen Plater, Stewardship, and Betty Kupeian, Presbyterian Church Building Corporation. Originally published in The Presbyterian Connection Fall 2023. For two days at the end of April 2023, Betty Kupeian, Chief Operating Officer of the Presbyterian Church Building Corporation (PCBC); Ainsley Chapman, Executive Director, Evangel Hall; Karen Plater, Associate Secretary, Stewardship, The Presbyterian Church in Canada; and the Rev. Dr. …
Recognizing Support From our Community
Clients and participants can expect respect and dignity while at EHM, but this is not always guaranteed that attitude outside our building. Luckily, EHM is part of a strong community that shares our same beliefs and cares for our neighbours. This is why we feel it is important to recognize those in our community who help support our clients and …
One of EHM’s Most Impactful Programs
How the Financial Trustee Program is Changing Lives When clients volunteer to enroll in the Financial Trustee Program, they authorize EHM to receive and manage their income on their behalf. Clients are active participants in planning and decision-making and can leave the program at any time. The purpose of the program is to protect clients from common money issues and …
Moving through a Merger Process
EHM’s Senior Director of Programs and Client Care recently won an award for her leadership during a 2021 merger between EHM and Portland Place, a small, 45 unit housing provider. Jennifer was recognized in particular for how she engaged staff and clients throughout the whole process. We sat down with Jennifer to hear more behind her strategy. What motivated EHM …
Faith Based Housing and Redevelopment at the Ontario Non-profit Housing Association Provincial Conference
Every year in October, the Ontario Non-profit Housing Association (ONPHA) hosts a provincial conference that brings together people to learn and share about everything from building, growing, to managing housing. Two major themes came out this year – the first looked at the struggles of small housing providers, and the second was at the challenges that faith-based communities face when …
More Than Just Housing, We Need to Build Community
By Ainsley Chapman, Executive Director, Evangel Hall Mission As more and more church properties are being sold to developers and private owners for housing or businesses, churches across the country in big cities and in small rural communities and of all denominations, have started important conversations about the future of their church land and buildings. One of those conversations is …
When Grief Prevents Imagining a New Future
It is bound to come up quickly in the conversation at any gathering of church folk, whether in a formal setting of a Session or presbytery meeting, or maybe just a coffee shop: how ill-equipped we feel to find a new role for the church in the rapidly changing environment of our world. We face declining numbers of people coming …