Portland Place is a long-term housing facility in downtown Toronto undergoing some changes after 24 years of growth. Supported by the Presbyterian Church in Canada and branched out of Evangel Hall—a mission for people who are homeless or vulnerable—this not-for-profit housing facility is a place where many people have come alive in identity, confidence and acceptance.
Within its 46 housing units, Portland Place commits to walking alongside each of the 60-plus residents—families, couples and singles—in everything from practical life skills to general emotional and physical support. The residents participate in daily and weekly activities, connecting through communal meals, cooking groups, holiday celebrations, skills training and tenant assistant job programs. Each activity allows the residents to learn the daily tasks and skills they may lack.
“Many of our residents are those who are typically pushed to the edges of society,” says Norma McClure, former general manager.
“The majority of our residents face major mental health issues, developmental challenges, addictions, long-term issues, and barriers in employment.
These are folks who have struggled to thrive in today’s society. We help them to thrive as much as possible.”
McClure is stepping down from her position after 24 years, and can still recall when she first heard about the job. “After completing my sociology and English degree, my minister knew I was looking for something meaningful to do. He led me to a bulletin board advertising the creation of Portland Place and their need for some help in the start up.”
McClure walked in blindly to a position with many early challenges and eventually, many glories. “The learning curve was steep. This was not a group I had experience with, but I just wanted to help people find a place. So much of it was learning on the fly—taking what worked well and running with it.”
One of the things McClure and the original staff established early on was to consistently celebrate life. “We remind people that they are not and will not be forgotten. One of those is the birthday cake tradition. In the early years, there was a man with us who had a brain injury. We always would tell him how great and valuable he was. It was not until we celebrated him with a birthday cake with his name on it that I think he really understood our care for him. He burst into tears exclaiming that we really did love him. Needless to say, that tradition stuck around.”
Along with celebrations came changes—something McClure has accepted as a means of growth.
“As we developed and brought more people in, we were able to house people with more severe challenges. We have become an instantly accepting community—something I’m not sure was there at the start.”
McClure is passing her wisdom on to recent University of Toronto graduate Clara Menard, whom McClure sees as one of the unique people who really understands the fragility of this work.
“I watched Clara with the tenants when she worked part-time. She has a very calm, rational and wise way about her and she really gets the ethos of Portland Place. She’s got a great heart and a wise head—she thinks these people are important and loved.”
Menard studied psychology and has a Master of Social Work. “It’s a really special place. The community there is so unique—it’s very flexible to the needs of each client. Because it’s a smaller community, it allows for more intensive support. There aren’t many places like it in Toronto,” she says.
Now settled and grasping her role more fully, with the full support of McClure, her mentor, Menard hopes to see Portland Place continue to grow by seeing it stay exactly the same.
“You don’t really want to mess with a good thing. Norma has created a very strong model. I just want to spread that model and show people how well it works.”
Menard also hopes to attract younger people to be aware of and help with the mission, creating an online presence to reach them and to help them understand that housing is an important issue in Canada today. She plans to shape fundraising around the ways young people involve themselves in charities, implementing fundraisers that allow supporters to be involved in something meaningful while raising money, rather than simply giving.
She invites people of all ages to become involved in the ministry through volunteering, donating and coming out to the fundraisers to experience the community and become aware of the housing issues right outside their door.
To support Portland Place or to find out more about how to be involved, visit pccweb.ca/portlandplace.
