Six Storeys of Help...
YWCA Regina's Renovation Project
Countless Stories of Hope
Here are a few of the women's stories:
Sara: "I came to the shelter six weeks ago. 'Adam'
had become more and more abusive, even though, every day after
he hit me, he promised never to do it again. My parents are
taking care of my six-year-old son while I try to sort my
life out. I can't wait to see my son again."
"I've learned a lot since coming here and I feel much better
about myself. I've lived with 'Adam's' abuse for too long.
This time I am going to leave him for the sake of myself,
and my son. I want to thank everyone here for helping me find
out who I am. I'm leaving today to stay with my parents for
a while with my son, as far away from 'Adam' as possible."
- 'Sara'
Lisa: "I've suffered with a mental illness almost
my whole adult life. Things normal people do every day can
be impossible for me. Cooking, cleaning, shopping and taking
care of finances were totally out of my control. For years
I stayed in hospitals with someone watching over my every
move, I felt useless."
"Since I started living at the 'YW', I feel much better about
myself. The people here have bent over backwards to help me.
They take me shopping, help me with my bills, and make sure
I take the right amount of medication. Now I can live a normal,
independent life, but I still have people nearby to give me
help when I need it."
- 'Lisa'
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Why the need to renovate?
The YWCA of Regina is the only supportive residential housing
program for single women. We currently do not have sufficient
space to respond to program needs.
The current 60,000 square foot building was built in 1970.
Since that time, limited work has been done to upgrade the
building. We need to make the building more wheelchair accessible,
and add an additional 17 resident rooms so that we may respond
better to current & growing needs in the community.
The total renovation project is approximately $3,500,000.
To date we have raised over $2,000,000 committed to the renovations.
The long-term benefits of the renovations:
-
Additional revenue base with the addition of the 3rd
floor;
-
More flexibility to move into other social housing needs
as the community needs change such as housing for seniors;
-
Bring the building up to a higher standard to meet current
codes and regulations;
-
Make the shelter wheelchair accessible (no other shelter
is accessible in Regina);
-
Upgrade the existing residence to respond to more current
needs (the rooms were designed for short stays, changes
to storage in the rooms accommodate long-term resident
needs);
-
Increase building security;
-
Redesign of day care services to bring the day cares
to current regulations;
-
Develop the pool area to provide better usage of existing
space, and
-
Give the message to the community that we are viable
and will remain in the community.
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