There are at least three Hamilton-based agencies that are receiving funding this year. Pictured: Ontario Minister of Children, Community and Social Services Michael Parsa. Photo Credit: Michael Parsa/X.
The Government of Ontario is investing $504,900 to provide “necessary building upgrades and repairs” to three Hamilton-based children and social services agencies.
The funding is part of the province’s Partner Facility Renewal Program.
The government’s 2024 investment in the program is $21.6 million, which is funding 642 projects at 181 community agencies across the province.
Funding is provided to organizations that deliver “vital programs related to anti-human trafficking, autism, child welfare, children’s mental health, developmental services, child development, Indigenous health and wellness, interpreter and intervenor services, violence against women, and youth justice services,” according to the province.
There are at least three Hamilton-based agencies that are receiving funding this year.
Approximately $230,000 will be provided to The Good Shepherd Centre of Hamilton, an organization that provides emergency food and clothing, daily hot meals, emergency shelters, transitional housing, hospital palliative care, community mental health programs, and supportive housing programs.
Next, about $197,000 will help Rygiel Supports for Community Living, an organization which “provides support to people who have a developmental disability and other handicapping conditions.”
About $77,000 will go towards Choices Association Inc, a not-for-profit charity located in Dundas that “helps support and assist people with developmental disabilities to pursue opportunities to actively participate in their community.”
The organization provides supported living, housing assistance, vocational and life skills training, volunteer opportunities, and community integration activities.
Agencies can use the funding for repairs and upgrades to roofing, windows, security systems, fire alarms, as well as for electrical, mechanical, HVAC, and plumbing systems.
Some facilities also use funding to improve building accessibility such as upgrading or installing ramps and lifts.
Project priority is determined using factors such as building age, ownership, occupancy, and urgency of the required repairs and upgrades.
In response to the funding announcement, Hamilton-based Member of Provincial Parliament (MPP) Donna Skelly, who represents Flamborough-Glanbrook, said, “Our local children’s and social services organizations are at the heart of our community.”
“By funding these repairs and upgrades, we are helping ensure that vulnerable Ontarians can access high-quality services and supports in safe and accessible spaces.”
Michael Parsa, the Government of Ontario’s Minister of Children, Community and Social Services, added that the government “is investing in hundreds of local community agencies so that they can spend more time helping people and less time worrying about building repairs.”
Based in Hamilton, he reaches hundreds of thousands of people monthly on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter. He has been published in The Hamilton Spectator, Stoney Creek News, and Bay Observer. He has also been a segment host with Cable 14 Hamilton. In 2017, he received the Chancellor Full Tuition Scholarship from the University of Ottawa (BA, 2022). He has also received the Governor General’s Academic Medal. He formerly worked in a non-partisan role on Parliament Hill in Ottawa.
