EDGEy Conversations with the Fred Victor Organization Since its opening in 1894 by Toronto’s Massey family, the Fred Victor Organization (named for Hart Massey’s son) has worked as a mission for the city’s most vulnerable, addressing head-on the three root causes of homelessness: health, housing, and income. Alexa Swaby, who joined Fred Victor last year as its Manager of Foundation and Gifts, took some time out recently for an EDGEy conversation with EDGE’s Alexandra Belaskie.
Alexa talked about the broad spectrum of services that Fred Victor offers, delivered through its 22 locations in the Greater Toronto Area:- Drop-in centres
- Shelters
- Transitional housing
- Permanent housing
- Food access and security
- Child and youth programming
- Women-specific programming
- Employment, education, and training
Areas currently receiving special focus include food security (food banks, free meals at the organization’s two community hub locations, gardening opportunities, etc.) and food access (assisting people to get what they need to access food programming, such as an address, identification, etc.), as well as finishing a new housing location in a renovated hotel that brings Fred Victor’s number of housing units up to 556. That number will rise in late 2023 or early 2024 when the organization completes it's current work on a modular housing project.
Alexa sees the Spirit moving in Fred Victor’s work through the extensive, diverse group of partners—individuals, organizations, businesses, and communities of faith from various traditions—that weave a supportive network that stretches across the GTA in all directions. She talks about a women’s shelter that, finding itself organically connected with a community of faith nearby, also found opportunities to create and develop community—a group that supported them as they built a new life. “It’s the true essence of the Spirit and the community,” she tells Alexandra. “…holding each other up, giving a hand up, you never know when you might see yourself in a situation that’s similar.” She hopes that what Fred Victor does is a good example to other organizations who perhaps can’t picture what those kinds of partnerships might look like.
She likes that Fred Victor is “rooted in helping those that need it” in a “person-centered” manner, considering that what works well for one person might not work well for another. She admits that she was surprised once she started working for Fred Victor at their reach and resources, and just how much the organization does for people. She commends the front-line staff for working long hours to get people in who are in their most vulnerable moments what they need and is proud to be part of an organization doing so much good.
Watch Alexa Swaby’s full EDGEy Conversation with Alexandra Belaskie.
[Image credit: Canva] |
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Music and Curiosity, Live at MacKay  Over the Easter season, MacKay United Church of Ottawa shared innovative daily music videos on curiosity and creativity. The short films are constructed around a weekly jazz improvisation led by the Rev. Peter Woods, an accomplished saxophone player and minister at MacKay United Church in Ottawa,punctuated by thoughtful dialogue exploring how curiosity and creativity are the doorways to a deeper spiritual life. The Curiosity Sessions: Live at MacKay was filmed and recorded in Ottawa, from October 31 to November 1, 2022. A film was launched daily between April 10 and 20, on YouTube and on MacKay United's Facebook page. You can view all of them at The Curiosity Sessions: Live at MacKay: Video Collection. "Curiosity is the first step in learning... Once I am curious, I choose to learn..." Woods explains in the films' opening statement. Each short film includes conversation between Woods and retired minister Rob Dalgleish (Founding Director of the EDGE Network), as well as with other artists: - Poet Caitlin Fisher (Director of the Immersive Storytelling Lab of York University)
- Carolyn Sutherland (Host of The Curiosity Sessions: Live at MacKay)
- Members of The Kindness of Jazz (Wood’s band)
The ten mini episodes vibrate with universal themes, including curiosity’s place at the heart of creativity and spirituality. "Although I am not Christian myself, I was deeply moved by the material", says Montreal filmmaker Randy Cole, who created the films. "The universal themes are powerful; they answer some of my questions about how music can move us so deeply." Cole is known for his films of Montreal and Ottawa jazz musicians and treats the material with care. Pete Woods thanks Caitlin Fisher, Jaymie Karn, and Randy Cole, for creative contributions to the project, and EDGE, MacKay United, and The United Church of Canada Foundation for funding support. [Image credit: Canva] |
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Curiosity Cohort Date Changes  Due to circumstances beyond its control, EDGE has had to change the dates that will run two upcoming Curiosity Cohorts: - Curiosity Cohort Rural Focus Spring 2023 will now run Thursdays, June 1–29, from 12:00–1:00 p.m. EDT. The day of the week hasn’t changed, but the time and the course dates have.
- Curiosity Cohort Fall 2023 will now run Thursdays, September 14–October 12, from 12:00–1:00 p.m. EDT. The day of the week and the time hasn’t changed, but the course dates have.
We apologize for this inconvenience! Please reach out to Sarah Levis at slevis@united-church.ca if you’ve already registered for either of these cohorts and now won’t be able to attend because of the changes; you do have options: - We can register you, free of charge, in another Curiosity Cohort where the timing is better for you.
- We can arrange to have CHURCHx refund your registration fee.
We’ve tried to contact students in these cohorts but haven’t heard back from everyone. We do hope that people will still be able to attend, or that we can register them in a cohort that’s a better fit for their schedule. Please contact Sarah at slevis@united-church.ca to talk more about this! [Image credit: Canva] |
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