ETOBICOKE – The Albion Neighbourhood Services isn’t just Etobicoke’s most populous community center; it also offers services that many centers like it don’t. Staff members at the Albion focus on meeting the area’s particular needs by offering counseling on mental health issues and housing.
Every community member that comes to Albion Neighbourhood Services for help has a different story. Cristal Ramraine a 24 year old who suffers from cocaine addiction and has no family support because of her to her drug addiction came to Albion Neighbourhood Services for help with counseling and housing because she had nowhere to go. Ramraine said, “Sometimes we all go through something, and as I want to get out the state I am in I need strength and support which my family members can’t give me.” Ramraine mentions that she appreciates the program of housing that is available to her its better than a living shelter to shelter it is something “stable” she added.
The Albion Centre helps people from different walks of life with different stories. The staff members that work for the community center are there for individuals that are in need of help for an example Cristal’s story where she was given support.
Pamela Farley a social worker, and counselor at Albion Neighbourhood Services said. “I work with individuals who were recently homeless and how have been housed through our Outreach Team. They come from all walks of life and have different challenges that have brought them to be homeless. A majority of my clients are living with addiction and mental health issues.”
As a counsellor who deals with different types of people on a daily basis Farley said, “I provide support in helping them maintain their housing, by helping them to stay away from their addictions such as drugs and dealing with their behaviour and providing resources for addiction, such as workshops to help them to stay away from that lifestyle by providing brief counselling and possibly connect them with long-term counselling as well as being a support for any other issues that may arise.”
When it comes to counseling and helping community members that are in need of assistance the next step in-house programming. House programming is when based on a individuals situation they may qualify for a certain house to live in or not it all is based on their situation and what is available to accommodate them. The housing manager of Albion Neighbourhood Services John Bagnall said: “we as a community center are really big on housing: that’s what most of the people come for help to us for.”
Bagnall is in charge of different projects, different areas of Etobicoke and helping to bring homeless to leave the streets and get into housing. For example, Bangall said, a program called the fee bank loan program helps community members who need housing look for private places to live at through government”. Bagnall said the program is created to help connect individuals with mental health services, addiction workshops and help them reach their full potential in order to turn their lives around.
The community center helps anyone in need of housing apply for applications to get residency, Bagnall mentions that some cases are more intensive than other issues at hand, some individuals addiction and problems may be complex than others if compared. This program is intended to help lower income individuals who are on Ontario works or disability.