Bruce Grey Poverty Task Force Poverty Task Force

Poverty Task Force/United Way Community Update # 103

Dear Colleagues, 

Truth and Reconciliation Week is Sept 26th to 30th. This is a time to reflect on hard truths but I challenge you and myself to reflect on how reconciliation can be a daily action.  

The Poverty Task Force and members have been working hard to build relations with Indigenous partners, communities and Nations. With the leadership of Giiwe, Indigenous-led Sharing Circles focus on housing & homelessness and youth issues.  

Diane Giroux has said that “the Giiwe process is so much more than reconciliation, it is a healing journey. The treaties signed between nations belong to all of us. We are on a healing journey for both sides. Colonialism is all of our past. We need to honour this. We need to honour the best side of all of us.”  

Reconciliation is alive and happening! Giiwe work is expanding its Sharing Circles and Cultural Mindfulness workshops. 

  • With an Agents of Change grant, Giiwe Sharing Circles are being organized with government councils, doctors and nurses, housing services, youth services from Sept to Dec 2022.  There are a few retreats being organized on Oct 9th and Dec 2nd at Silver Lake Camp/Sauble Beach. 
  • Giiwe is delivering Cultural Mindfulness with First Responders, City of Owen Sound Managers and other senior managers/leaders. 
  • Giiwe is also part of an international collaboration on A Shared Future and  the Gikinoo’amaagewin Wiigwaam project on Indigenous land stewardship. 
  • Reach out to Diane Giroux, giiwe.home@gmail.com, 519-271-1147, to connect on how to join the Giiwe in building relations and positive change in community. 
  • ‘Gidinawendimin – “We are all related’ shares the culture, language, music, dance, and stories from across the regions. Register today to view the live stream here.  

INCOME SUPPORT

Federal Affordability Inflation Measures: the government has announced new measures to address inflation to target low and modest income earners.  

  • Canada Dental Benefit: for children under 12 who do not have access to dental insurance. Low- and middle-income families with a combined income of under $90,000 can access up to $650 per year for the next two years for dental services. The next step will be to extend dental care to under 18s, seniors and people with disabilities by the end of 2023, before full implementation of the program by 2025.
  • GST Tax Credit: doubled for six months. Singles without children will get up to $234 more from the credit, couples with children will get up to $467 more and seniors can expect an average boost of $225 this year.
  • Canada Housing Benefit: a one-time increase to the Canada Housing Benefit, providing up to $500 to 1.8 million Canadian renters struggling with housing needs. The federal government said the benefit will be available to families with an adjusted net income below $35,000 — or to singles with incomes below $20,000 — who pay at least 30% of their income on rent. 

Challenges still exist for any additional dollars reaching people that have not filed their taxes, people without homes and those who are couch surfing. Income solutions are needed to address such as a guaranteed basic income and living wage but these must be accessible to everyone as well.

  • YMCA Webinar: Basics on Tax Benefits: Tuesday, October 11th, 2022 at 1:30pm – General Tax Awareness (30 mins):Join the CVITP and Benefits Outreach Officer with the CRA to ask questions and find out more on the basics of taxes. Register here.  
  • Ontario Photo, OHIP, Driver’s Licenses Cards and license plates: you can now sign up for free digital reminders by email, text, or phone call 60 and 30 days before it is time to renew. These are critical to access services and avoid fines for expired license and plates.
  • Retreated Workers’ Survey: the survey released by the Four County Labour Planning Board is still open until Sept 30th. The response has been good and is providing insights into barriers to employment, which age groups are not returning to the workforce and what retention & attraction strategies need to be used to meet the demand for employees.  Find the survey here. 

HOUSING SUPPORT

  • Home Takeover Project: has released its findings, recommendations and guidelines which can be found at this Grey Bruce Public Health link.
    • This project is focused on Rent Geared to Income/Grey County Housing in Owen Sound for the pilot since they initially raised the issue to be addressed. 
    • Community Partners Survey Results and Interviews with People with Lived Experience have been summarized and posted. Key resources including education posters, flyers, postcards and checklists are also posted. 
    • A Response Framework, Guidebook and Response Pathway for Organizations and Service Providers are being developed. For presentations and more information contact Lisa Alguire at Grey Bruce Health Unit (519-376-9420). 
  • The Long-term Landlord Housing Initiative is underway, and The Meeting Place is accepting applications until September 14th, 2022. Potential applicants can reach out to housing@tobermorymeetingplace.com, or download the Application Guide and Form at this website link. 
  • Wiarton Propeller Club has announced it is donating land for affordable housing in partnership with South Bruce Peninsula Municipality.  

NEWCOMER SUPPORT 

TRANSPORTATION SUPPORT

  • GTR route between Owen Sound and Sauble Beach was closed on Sept 5th. Regular Route 5 service will resume on Tuesday, September 6 between Owen Sound and Wiarton. Learn more at www.grey.ca/gtr
  • The Salvation Army Wiarton: is offering transportation support for medical or grocery rides. We mourn the loss of Kim Chegano who passed recently. She gave so much to the community. She will be very missed. Contact Roni Delleman at: 519-534-0353 x 100. 

FOOD SUPPORT

  • Grey Bruce Good Food Box has updated its schedule at its 20 pickup locations. Please note that several locations will start up only in October and others have changed pickup days and times. For a complete list of locations, order and pick ups times, check the 211 listing.  
  • The Ontario School Nutrition Programs (OSNP) Grey Bruce is welcoming volunteers back into schools but is still  facing challenges with the rising cost of food.  The OSNP provides funding and support to 61 schools in Grey and Bruce Counties. 
  • The Meaford Community Gardens is celebrating 12 years of gardening and reported they shared 300-400 lbs of food monthly this harvest. 

FUNDING SUPPORT 

Stay well, Jill 

Bruce Grey Poverty Task Force Poverty Task Force

Poverty Task Force/United Way Community Update #88

Dear Colleagues, 

The federal government has released its 2022 budget. There was continued and new funding for affordable housing; and advancements in dental care, pharmacare,  National School Food Policy, National Childcare Program and a new national pilot to address period poverty. Here are a few highlights: 

Housing and Homelessness

  • $475 million in 2022-23 to provide a one-time $500 payment to those facing housing affordability challenges through the Canada Housing Benefit.
  • $562.2 million to enhance the Reaching Home program that prevents and reduces homelessness. 
  • $62.2 million to launch a new Veteran Homelessness Program that will provide services and rent supplements to veterans experiencing homelessness.
  • $1.5 billion over 2 years, starting in 2022-23, to extend the Rapid Housing Initiative. This new funding is expected to create at least 6,000 new affordable housing units, with at least 25% of funding going towards women-focused housing projects.
  • Introduces a Multigenerational Home Renovation Tax Credit, which would provide up to $7,500 in support for constructing a secondary suite for a senior or an adult with a disability, starting in 2023.

Dental Care

  • $5.3 billion set aside for dental care over the next 5 years  and $1.7 billion ongoing, to provide dental care for low-income Canadians. This would double public dental spending.  
  • Canadians can access a new dental care coverage plan before the end of the year – if their income is less than $70,000 annually. The program will provide care to those under 12 years of age and expand to under 18-year-olds, seniors, and persons living with a disability in 2023, with full implementation by 2025
  • Families with incomes less than $90,000 would be eligible for a portion of their dental costs being covered 
  • Families earning less than $70,000 would be fully covered

Pharmacare and Addressing Period Poverty

  • The government committed to establishing a National Pharmacare Program with a clear timeline of tabling legislation by the end of 2023. 
  • $25 million to Women and Gender Equality to start a 2 year national pilot project aimed at making menstrual products available to Canadians in need. 

National Child Care Program and National School Food Policy

  • $30 billion over five years to implement the National Childcare Program, and as of now, all provinces have signed on
  • The government commits to working with provinces, territories, municipalities, Indigenous partners, and stakeholders to develop a National School Food Policy and to explore how more Canadian children can access nutritious food at school.

What more needs to be done? 

  • There is still more work to be done to guarantee income for people living below the poverty line. This includes single working-age adults and people with disabilities. 
  • While the Canada Housing Benefit helps those at immediate risk of homelessness or to exit homelessness, with no increase in income and rising housing costs, people who are renting are still struggling. 
  • The Western Ontario Wardens’ Caucus (WOWC) has recently identified the following key priorities for the coming year:
    • Affordable and Attainable Housing in Rural Areas
    • Workforce Development through the Implementation of the Western Ontario Workforce Strategy
    • Continued Broadband Infrastructure Investment and Advocacy
    • Mental Health and Addictions

INCOME SECURITY SUPPORT

  • The Ontario government has announced it is making the Birth Certificate Fee Waiver Program permanent, eliminating the $35 fee for birth certificates. Access to government identification is important for people to access vital supports such as housing and social assistance. 
  • Ontario’s general minimum wage is set to increase to $15.50/hr, as of Oct 1, 2022.
  • The federal government is announcing a new phase of the Connecting Families initiative program that provides high-speed internet at $20 per month to low-income families and seniors across Canada. This will improve the internet speed for seniors who currently are paying $10/month. Further subsidies will exist for families receiving the full Child Tax Benefit and Seniors Guaranteed Income Supplement.
  • South East Grey Community Health Centre: 2 Income Tax clinics remain –  April 21st in Dundalk and April 26th in Markdale.

HOUSING SUPPORT

  • M’Wikwedong Indigenous Housing Support Program: currently serving 78 households, 100 people (56% chronically homeless, 35% youth led families and 25% discharged from institutions), 18 people were sex trafficked. 
  • Habitat for Humanity Grey Bruce has created a Truth and Reconciliation in Action video. In 2022, they will be building 7 new homes will be built in Saugeen First Nation #29. 
  • The YMCA Emergency Housing program is reporting the numbers of people being sheltered are high!  It is increasingly difficult to find affordable rental housing and this is only going to get more difficult as we move into the summer tourism season when we see motels booked up.

FOOD SECURITY SUPPORT

  • United Way of Bruce Grey supported the donation of over 700 lbs of beef from Courtney Miller, local farmer to 5 local community meal programs. 
  • FoodBruceGrey.com: Since January 2020, over 350,000 community meals have been prepared. 
  • No Matter What Tailgate Soup Kitchen: have served 1,060 meals this winter season. 
  • Tobermory Food Bank spoke to the impact of rising costs, inflation and challenges for families in their area. 

Stay well, Jill 

Bruce Grey Poverty Task Force Poverty Task Force

Poverty Task Force/United Way Community Update # 81

Dear Colleagues, 

International Human Rights Day was on Friday, December 10th last week. The Day is a reminder that overcoming poverty is not a gesture of charity. It is an act of justice. It is the protection of a fundamental human right, the right to dignity and a decent life. (Nelson Mandela)

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that each person is entitled to certain fundamental rights: the right to life; liberty; equality; and security. In Canada, we have also legislated the right to housing, food, income security and equity.

Taking a human rights approach to our work on poverty changes the way we work. It directs us to share a vision of what human dignity looks like for ourselves and our neighbours. This was a large part of a recent Vital Signs Conversation on Housing hosted by the Community Foundation of Grey Bruce on Thursday, Dec 9th. We do require a mind shift. Not, some people are lucky or deserving of a home, but all people “have a right to a home”. 

HOUSING SUPPORTS

  • Emergency Housing over the holidays: Emergency phone line is open but Safe N Sound will be closed on Dec 25th, 27th and 28th. Contact 211 to verify the hours for housing service providers and other support organization.
  • Homelessness Coordinated Access System: has updated referral documents for the By Names List. Simcoe County has prepared 2 videos on What is a Coordinated Access System? and What is a By Names List? Contact Caitlin Currie, Homelessness Response Coordinator, Caitlin.Currie@grey.ca for what we are doing in Grey and Bruce Counties. 
  • Advocacy Centre for Tenants Ontario: tenants who have a Notice of Hearing from the Landlord and Tenant Board, can sign up to receive a call back from aTenant Duty Counsel in your area before your hearing.
  • The City of Owen Sound undertook a Citizen Satisfaction Survey in the summer of 2021  These findings form the starting point in the development of the advocacy priorities for 2022 and 2023. The top 5 advocacy priorities are: Affordable housing, cost of living, homelessness; COVID-19, Health including public health and mental health, Employment and workforce development and Climate Action. They also prioritized the development of a Regional Comprehensive Transportation Plan for Georgian Bay and the Bruce Peninsula. For more information, please contact Tim Simmonds, City Manager at 519-376-4440 ext. 1210 or email to tsimmonds@owensound.ca

PANDEMIC RELATED SUPPORTS

  • Sanitation Supplies: The United Way has a selection of 50ml tubes of hand sanitizer, 100 tubes per box and boxes of Lysol wipes (6 packages per box) available for pick up in Owen Sound. If you are interested, email Misty@unitedwaybg.com
  • Enhanced Vaccine Certificate: as of Jan 4, 2022, the enhanced vaccine certificate with QR code will be needed in certain settings. 
  • Download it at covid19.ontariohealth.ca 
  • Get it printed at a library or Service Ontario Centre. 
  • Call the Provincial Vaccine Contact Centre at 1-833-943-3900 to get it mailed. 

ADDICTIONS SUPPORTS

  • Saugeen First Nation: has a Photovoice Series as part of a First Nation Wellness Initiative. Several videos promote mental wellness under the pandemic. Video 3, Video 4  and Video 5.
  • CDAS Opioid Working Group: Preliminary data shows that there have been 31 deaths between June 2020 to June 2021. This is a significant increase over the 12 deaths from June 2019 to June 2020.
  • With the ongoing opioid crisis being worsened by the Pandemic, we need to be aware of benzodiazepines and nitazene opioids in the unregulated drug supply in Ontario. Naloxone kits are very effective with overdoses but will not reverse the effects of these drugs. However, it can assist in keeping people breathing until they can get to hospital.
  • Naloxone Kits: please understand that they can not be used if they have been frozen. So if you are seeing them where people camp outside or if they are left in a car in the winter, please get them replaced or give out new ones. Contact: Bailey Ressler, B.Ressler@publichealthgreybruce.on.ca.
  • Sharps Pilot Report: 56,706 sharps (needles) were returned to Safe N Sound under a 18th month Sharps pilot program with the United Way of BG. People obtained a $5-10 gift card in exchange based on the size of their container.

INCOME SUPPORTS

  • Safe N Sound ID Clinic/Income Tax Clinic: in partnership with CMHA-GB, the United Way and South East Grey CHC to offer a free Income Tax Clinic. It is estimated 1 in 10 people coming into Safe N Sound don’t have their taxes done or ID.  Clinics will be held on January 11th and 25th, 2022.  
  • Federal Budget: the government announced one-time payments to alleviate financial hardship of Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS) and Allowance recipients who received the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) or the Canada Recovery Benefit (CRB) in 2020. 
  • However, in the technical briefing, it states it will calculate this payment on an individual basis and reimburse them starting in May 2022.   We will need to continue to support seniors through the winter and all the issues the pandemic raises.
  • Students who received the CERB but were found ineligible, will receive debt cancellation pending eligibility for the Canadian Emergency Student Benefit. FYI. This Benefit is closed to new applications. 
  • Campaign 2000 continues to advocate that compensation must now be expanded to include anyone living on low incomes who had other income benefits reduced, including people on social and disability assistance, and those who saw their workers benefit, child benefits and housing supplements reduced. 
  • Campaign 2000 also recommends the reinstatement of the Canada Recovery Benefit for individuals whose working hours are still impacted by the pandemic into Bill C-2.
  • Campaign 2000 encourages the federal government to make their decisions align with their commitments to reducing poverty. This includes dealing with the technical and design elements of benefits, which resulted in these kinds of negative benefit interactions. This would mean that the promised repayment to seniors should be made as a refundable credit so that it does not interfere with payments, in addition to making pandemic benefits deductible on the GIS income form.

FOOD SECURITY SUPPORTS

  • Holiday Meals: 211 has a list of all Holiday community meal programs, hampers and food programs.
  • WRAP Mental Health: has developed a Loneliness Workbook. The content comes from a study of nearly 100 people and their strategies for relieving their own loneliness. 
  • PROOF has released its A Look Back at 10 Years of PROOF   Reframing discussions to recognize food insecurity as an indicator of pervasive material hardship, and therefore a way for measuring success in poverty reduction  shifts the policy focus to underlying problems of income inadequacy.
  • FoodBruceGrey.com: collects Grey Bruce food insecurity data which reflects the level of hardships people are experiencing locally. 
    • 15,559 meals were distributed in November 2021. 166,763 meals have been distributed since January 2021. (11 out of 16 programs reporting)
    • 14,015 households (18,169 people) were supported at 19 out of 20 Food Banks. 

 Stay well, Jill