EDMONTON – An Edmonton women’s shelter that was forced to close its doors last month due to a funding shortfall, has turned down City money that would allow it to temporarily reopen.
“I won’t take money unless we know we have a sustainable model,” said Janine Fraser, executive director of Edmonton Women’s Shelter. “Otherwise we’re going to be right back to where we are.”
Win House III, which focuses on meeting the needs of immigrant, refugee and trafficked women and children, shut down on October 31. Since then, Fraser says she’s been constantly worried about “the women and children that I know need that service, that are facing and living with domestic abuse, the human traffic victims that won’t have a specific place to go.”
As a pilot project, the shelter was partially funded by a federal grant, which the shelter lost last year.
As an elected leader, City Councillor Amarjeet Sohi says he has a responsibility to speak up. On Wednesday, he put forward a motion that would provide the shelter with $50,000 to temporarily reopen.
“Hundreds of women are being turned away from shelters because there’s no room in those shelters. So that is a crisis we need to deal with,” Sohi explained.
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However, Fraser turned down the money, saying the shelter is not looking for a temporary fix. She says Win House III will not reopen its doors until it has long-term, sustainable funding in place.
Win House says it needs about $420,000 per year to operate the shelter. The City says it will work with Win House to put together a business model that will help it obtain the sustainable funding it’s looking for.
“The need is real. The need is not going to go away. We need to find a way to support these agencies and organizations so they can continue to provide the service that they need to provide,” Sohi explained. “There’s children involved, there’s women involved. I think we need to find long-term support and advocate on behalf of our communities and the need in the community.”
“It sounds like there’s a will on council to do some heavy advocacy on this,” added Mayor Don Iveson. “It’s not for the City of Edmonton to step up and fund something that’s not in our jurisdiction, but it’s absolutely for the political leaders of Edmonton – my council colleagues and myself – to speak out where there’s a need like this. It’s real in our community.”
Win House III falls into a grey area when it comes to funding, because it’s more of a transitional house for women, rather than a shelter.
In late October, Alberta’s Human Services Minister, Dave Hancock, released a statement saying:
“Although Human Services has never provided operational funding for WIN III, we are working with them to find an appropriate avenue for this longer-term transitional housing model since their federal grant was terminated.”
Fraser says Win House is also speaking with Homeward Trust Edmonton, a not-for-profit organization funded by several orders of government, in hopes of securing funding.
Fraser hopes the funding will come through, so Win House III can reopen and “so we never have to look at another women again and tell her we’re closing, and be worried she doesn’t have a safe place to go.
“We won’t go down that garden path ever again.”
Fraser says a meeting between Win House and Homeward Trust Edmonton is scheduled for this week.
With files from Tom Vernon, Global News.
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