Rotary to give Seeds of Hope $100,000

By Barbara Thomson –

The Rotary Club of Toronto Centennial Award of $100,000 is granted to  Seeds of Hope for its innovative program:” Lazarus House-First Step” The 2013 Centennial award of $100,000 to Seeds of Hope (SOH) has contributed to making the Committee’s 2005 vision a reality. Seeds of Hope, “Lazarus House, First Step” premises at 622 Yonge Street will house up to 10 chronically homeless women with mental health &/or addiction challenges.

Only a few doors away at 6 St. Joseph Street, the SOH Resource and Learning Centre will provide over 40 programs for residents of Lazarus House. SOH has a unique role in its partnerships with agencies that offer medical & health services, such as Margaret’s Place and M-Dot (funded by CAMH and the City) – demonstrating how the benefits of a ‘community model’ inter-relate with traditional ‘medical/institutional models’.

This charity has a 10 year history of operating two resource centres and five housing projects that work to stop the “revolving door” of individuals moving from the streets to the court system to hospitalization and back to the street. Its’ main focus has been to create ‘centres of friendship’ that are safe places where individuals who are at a crossroads in their lives can support one another. Seeds of Hope’s Lazarus House-First Step will offer a community support model to transition individuals who have become homeless to become contributing members of the community.

The Community Services Committee elected to support the Seeds of Hope Foundation to create a new place of compassion and caring at the corner of St-Joseph & Yonge streets. The funds provided by the Rotary Club of Toronto have been used to renovate and retrofit the space for the needs of the ladies who will be using it to overcome their challenges.

At the ribbon cutting event on January 31, 2013 Lazarus House founder, Sister Susan Moran, said during the opening ceremony “These facilities will help restore dignity and provide help to go back to wonderful living”. During the inauguration ceremony, Kim Curry, Rotarian and Executive Director of Seeds of Hope Foundation, thanked the Rotary Club of Toronto for providing a place of belonging, where dignity, trust and friendship is achieved. The Rotary Club of Toronto and Seeds of Hope Foundation look forward to help reduce the “revolving door of homelessness”.