COVID-19 Grants: Unity Project
COVID-19 Grants: Unity Project
Unity Project provides emergency shelter and transitional housing to those experiencing homelessness in London. With the COVID-19 pandemic exposing many of the inequalities in our system and disproportionately impacting our community’s most vulnerable, the need for Unity Project’s services has greatly increased.
“We’re hosting a larger population than is typical for us,” says Silvia Langer, Unity Project’s Director of Development. “Thankfully, with help from the City, we were able to relocate our emergency shelter to a hotel, prioritizing rooms for people who are vulnerable to the worst effects of the virus, including seniors and those with prior health conditions.”
In addition to a shift in location, vital drop-in supports were ceased altogether, a service that was used as many as 150 times a day previously. Formalized case-management, which involved home visits to monitor and improve the housing situation and stability of participants, was also put on hold in order to focus on essential services and adapting staffing and procedures to the current situation.
With support from the LCF COVID-19 Response Fund, Unity Project will be able to replenish their dwindling supply of personal protective equipment, afford additional staffing, and make much needed renovations to their shelter to ensure they have a sound facility to return to.
“We’re so grateful for the funding from LCF and its partners in response to this overwhelming crisis,” says Silvia. “It will help us to persevere in the short term, to recover on the other side of this pandemic with institutional vigour, and to continue advocating for systemic change.”
The community as a whole has also stepped up to help Unity Project feed their participants, ensuring their health and well-being throughout the pandemic.
While the temporary move to private hotel rooms has made a huge impact on the mental health and quality of life of Unity Project participants, it is not a sustainable solution to the systemic issues exposed by the pandemic.
“Hotels are not housing. The pandemic has made it clear that housing and income are social determinants of health and we need deep, system-level change to address the marginalization of people that makes them vulnerable,” says Silvia.
“Housing, with supports, is the solution to homelessness; Income, the solution to poverty.”
While volunteerism and in-kind donations have been put on hold until further notice, monetary donations allow Unity Project to buy the exact supplies they need when they need them. You can donate online at www.unityproject.ca/donate-covid-19-response or mail cheques payable to Unity Project, Attention Silvia Langer at 717 Dundas Street, London ON, N5W 2Z5. For more information, contact Silvia Langer at slanger@unityproject.ca.
UPwithART, Unity Project’s signature fundraising event, will now be held online between May 24 and May 30. Visit www.upwithart.ca to register.