Shelter where it’s needed
New North York facility to house up to 40 women and children
For Mohini Datta-Ray, North York Women’s Shelter had a “one-shot opportunity” to build a new facility for its clients — women and children impacted by violence.
When next summer arrives, that opportunity the agency seized on will become a reality as the new, 24,000square-foot fully accessible emergency shelter and community services hub is expected to be in operation.
The $12-million building at 940 Shep- pard Ave. W. can house up to 40 women and children. It will be equipped with17 bedrooms, each with a private bathroom. It will also include four lounges, two kitchens, an outdoor play area, gardens, pet kennels and more.
“The reason for the increase in size was we really knew we had a one-shot opportunity here and we needed to get it right,” said Datta-Ray, North York Women’s Shelter executive director. “We wanted to build something that didn’t replicate sites of institutional violence like residential schools or pris- ons; the old shelter really did feel oppressive … we want to make sure this shelter is welcoming.”
The previous 3,000-square-foot building, which was at the same location, had six bedrooms and three bathrooms for 30 women and children.
Since 1984, North York Women’s Shelter has helped more than 11,000 women and children heal from the trauma of abuse.
One of those women was Nikki.
Metroland agreed to use a pseudonym to protect her privacy.
Nikki, a sponsored spouse, said she experienced physical, verbal, mental and financial abuse from her partner for almost two years.
When she decided to leave, she reached out to an organization to help her get a bed in the shelter. She was new to the city, so she had no one else to turn to. They were able to find her a bed that night. Nikki ended up staying in the shelter for six months.
She said the support and mentorship she received was “unparalleled” and it led her to her new career as a social worker because she wanted to give back to the community.
“I think the idea of how strong women can be and the fact that if you’ve been through situations, there’s still help out there, there’s still good out there be- cause often we lose sight of that … they help you to continue believing that,” she said. “And I feel a lot of the positives I feel today, the good times I have, the way I was able to come out of it and feel stronger, a lot of it goes to North York Women’s Shelter and the staff there.”
While there will be several improvements, one of the most notable components is the community services hub, Datta-Ray said. The hub will provide services like financial and legal counselling, traumainformed health services and mental health programming, all offered in partnership with community care providers.
“We wanted to bring services to the very vulnerable population as conveniently and as safely as possible,” Datta-Ray said. “We wanted to make sure we’re expanding our reach and we’re also shifting the way services are offered, so by doing partnerships with agencies that are already serving women we can expand that gender-lens and that framework of how violence impacts women through our service partnerships.”
Nikki said the new shelter will be beneficial to women who will go through it.
“The extra resources that are being added to the rebuild and the thought process that’s gone into it can only add to the supports that become available to the residents,” she said, adding having services under one roof is “nothing short of a miracle.”