Coming Home Society

On the streets of St. James' Parish, in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside, there are many young Aboriginal women who are homeless and at-risk. They have fled lives of neglect and abuse only to be further victimized by violence and sexual exploitation on the street. Many of them are already mothers who, unable to care for their children, have had them taken into government care. Disconnected from their culture, without support, they are vulnerable to drug and alcohol addiction.

The Coming Home Society invites these young women to 'come home'. Born from a series of community 'listening circles' held at St. James' Church, and with a mandate from the Anglican Diocese of New Westminster, the Coming Home Society in partnership with Urban Native Youth Association created Young Wolves Lodge, Vancouver's only residential recovery house for seventeen to twenty-four year old Aboriginal women.

In this loving home they receive the support and nurturing they need to in turn be able to nurture and care for their children. A structured, holistic program based on the Aboriginal concept of the Medicine Wheel addresses the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual needs of the young women. Through four months of counseling, workshops, the responsibilities and relationships of communal living, and the learning they experience on educational, recreational and cultural outings, they are given the tools they need to reshape their lives. They can deal with their addictions, regain custody of their children, discover the proud values and traditions of their culture, and find their place of belonging in the community.

A Transition Worker makes Young Wolves Lodge unique. This worker ensures that each woman graduating from the program has secured housing, has developed a community support network and has a plan for the next step in her healing journey. The Transition Worker follows and supports each graduate for a year to ensure that she has the best possible chance to maintain her recovery.

In 2008 the Coming Home Society received a national "Eva's Initiatives in Innovation Award" for its work in bringing the church and the Aboriginal community together to address youth homelessness by creating Young Wolves Lodge.

You can join the Parish of St. James' and the many other churches and individuals of the Anglican Diocese of New Westminster and beyond in supporting this healing and life-saving work:

• You can uphold the staff and the women of Young Wolves Lodge in your prayers.
• You can learn more about the program and about the healing of Aboriginal families and culture by having a speaker from the Coming Home Society come to your church or other organization.
• You can make a financial contribution. The Coming Home Society's Young Wolves Lodge receives federal homelessness funding but depends on donations from individuals and churches to meet the monthly expenses.
You can donate directly to: Coming Home Society, 303 East Cordova Street, Vancouver, B.C. V6A 1L4 or through the Diocesan 'Going the Extra Mile' program (GEM). All donations will receive charitable tax receipts.