Course:Course:LFS350/Projects/F2023/Archway2

From UBC Wiki

Project Title

A Healing Garden for Hearthstone Place Supportive Housing

Organization Name

Archway Community Services

Hearthstone Place Supportive Housing

Organization Information

Organization Name

Archway Community Services

Hearthstone Place Supportive Housing

Mission and Vision of Organization

Archway Community Services fosters community well-being and social justice through positive action and leadership. Justice, opportunities and equitable access for all.

Guiding Principles + Values

The core values for our work at Archway Community Services include:

  • Inclusivity – We welcome everyone, showing consideration and respect for all experiences and ideas.
  • Compassion – We empower others, and defend and advocate for human dignity.
  • Excellence – We never stop learning and improving. We pursue our vision with determination, ethics, and heart.

Our Three-Fold Intent is:

  • To plan for and provide direct social and community services.
  • To heighten awareness of social concerns in the community & to foster community involvement.
  • To create opportunities for community members to participate in serving, developing and strengthening our communities through partnership with government, private organizations and individuals.

Contact Information

  • Primary Contact Person(s): Megan Capp (she/her/hers), Manager of Social Justice Seniors and Housing
  • Email: megan.capp@archway.ca
  • Phone: 604-996-0065
  • Address: 2719 Gladys Avenue
  • Website: www.archway.ca
  • Alternate Contact Person: Neil Stark (he/him), Director of Advocacy and Social Equity
  • Email/Phone: 604-649-2809

Preferred Method of Contact

  • Best method(s) to contact: Email
  • Best day(s) to contact: Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays, We operate 24/7 so are flexible

Preferred Platform(s) for Collaboration and Student Meetings

  • In person
  • Email
  • Phone
  • Skype
  • Zoom
  • MS Teams

Project Description

Note: This project will take place online and in person

Context/Background

Opening its doors on March 1st, 2017, Hearthstone Place is a low-barrier housing initiative that supports 20 men and 10 women who have been homeless or are at risk of homelessness. Hearthstone operates under the Housing First model, which empirically demonstrates that people are more able to work towards personal stability and wellness if they have a home. Unlike a temporary emergency shelter bed, this program provides individual, self-contained suites for an optimal period of between 18 to 24 months. The focus for our residents during this time period is on addressing personal barriers, which may include addiction and/or mental health challenges.

The ultimate goal of Hearthstone Place is empowering our residents towards living as independently and successfully as possible. Hearthstone Place is operated by Archway Community Services in collaboration with our partners — BC Housing and the City of Abbotsford. To best meet the unique and dynamic needs of our residents, we provide basic in-house support 24/7 as well as referrals, advocacy, and connection to a wide range of community partners.

Hearthstone has experienced tremendous loss in the past few years, due to the poisoned drug supply and increasing negativity towards those living unhoused.

Food Systems Issue(s) Addressed in this Project

"Healing Gardens, also known as Healing Places, are intentional, natural outdoor spaces where people can have a meaningful restorative experience in nature. Indigenous Healing Gardens use culturally significant plants to promote this experience while conveying Indigenous knowledge, principles, and connections to the land. These spaces can create a safe place for Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities to learn and reflect, and nurture a healing process of reconciliation. Defined by natural elements and our connections to them, the gardens can be an outdoor classroom and an inspirational space for all who visit."

- Bruce Trail Conservancy (2023)

Overrepresentation of Indigenous Peoples in Canada's unhoused population is well documented. This reflects the ongoing impacts of settler colonialism, including systemic barriers to employment and education, racism (including racial discrimination in the housing market), and intergenerational impacts of the Indian Residential School System. Many of Hearthstone's residents identify as Indigenous, and collectively we grieve for community members we have lost to the ongoing opioid crisis.

We would like students to help design and implement a healing garden for Hearthstone residents, with a focus on culturally significant and native plants Students can research and look to a number of healing gardens across "BC" for examples of design -- design of engagement and planning processes, as well as physical design. For example:

Main Project Activities

  • Work with staff to develop a garden design engagement process for Hearthstone residents. Discussion could include:
    • Why they think having a garden at Hearthstone is important to themselves, and to other/future residents
    • Culturally important plants they would like to see in the garden
    • Design features they would like to see (e.g. benches/seating area, shade-giving trees, etc.)
    • Concerns they may have about the garden
  • Assess the site's lighting conditions, drainage, and other factors relevant to garden design
  • Collaboratively develop and propose a design for the garden
  • Create a maintenance and care plan
  • Find sources for plants/trees
  • Develop a project budget

If time permits

  • Implement the creation of the garden, or provide staff the framework for implementation
  • Building/implementation could be handled by Term 2 students if there is not enough time in Term 1
Retrieved from "https://wiki.ubc.ca/index.php?title=Course:Course:LFS350/Projects/F2023/Archway2&oldid=806534"