Five years ago, Andrea saw a need in her small community of Listowel, Ontario and decided to fill it by co-founding It Takes A Village: a grassroots, community funded organization that empowers community members who are living with precarious housing, financial challenges and mental health issues. Listowel, like so many other small communities in Ontario, did not have services in place to address these all-too-common social needs. Folks who are struggling are often forced to leave Listowel for a larger city that has expanded social services; in so doing, they lose family connections, local networks, even familiar bus routes. Andrea wanted to create services that “will meet people where they are.”
The other community that Andrea inhabits is Renison. She is a third-year Arts student planning to eventually pursue a bachelor of social work. Maintaining good grades while meeting the growing social needs of her community has been a challenge, particularly in the wake of a global pandemic.
“COVID-19 put a spotlight on the many gaps that exist for those living precariously, and those gaps began to widen.” The closure of spaces like arenas and municipal offices resulted in the loss of some pretty basic needs such as public washrooms and water fountains.
Andrea shifted her balance from academics to her community activism, and her grades suffered as a result. Though she admits it has been difficult and she has been hard on herself that she couldn’t spend the time on school she needed to, she knows she made the right decision. “I chose the right thing to focus on during that time,” explains Andrea. “I was helping people navigate both addiction and misinformation, and I have seen a significant increase in food insecurity, and clients who articulate that they are financially precarious.”
It Takes a Village (ITAV) has a mission to empower people who are struggling, while ensuring their dignity is protected. ITAV has a storefront in downtown Listowel that is a cashless secondhand business model that works on a points system. Each visitor is given points that can be used to purchase items in the store. Andrea says that this model helps to maintain dignity for visitors, particularly those who may be reaching out for help for the first time.
Above: An example of how much items in the ITAV storefront "costs." Each person who arrives is given a number of points to spend during their visit.
Above: A fruit and vegetable stand that is placed outside ITAV's storefront when fresh produce is available.
ITAV also provides support and advocacy for those navigating systems, and will assist those who need help with (among other things) housing, substance dependency, and mental health services. Every Monday and Tuesday, ITAV provides access to laptops, phones, or internet access for those needing to attend meetings, appointments, court appearances, etc. They also have a foodbank where clients can access goods without providing any identifying information.
The community support has been largely positive, and as Andrea puts it “Some things speak for themselves.” ITAV has been exclusively-community funded for 5 years, and it’s a great model of how a community can care for its own people. There is some negativity, and once in awhile when Andrea gets tired in her soul “the universe sends a beacon.” In one instance that beacon took the form of a gentleman who came in and donated transit and grocery cards, and shared his own story. He said that when his son was growing up and struggling there were no resources, and had to move in order to get support. He knows that if ITAV had existed then, his son would have been supported right in Listowel. Stories like these come to Andrea quite often, and illustrate how much of an impact the organization has on the community.
The reason Andrea began her studies at Renison is due to her deep feelings of responsibility for her community. She began at Renison years after starting and stopping a degree at the University of Waterloo in the mid-1990s, leaving school after becoming a mother. She admits being afraid to come back to academics in her late 40s, but the draw of the community and the coursework were strong. “The courses made me feel like a kid in a candy store,” Andrea says. “And the draw to Renison was the community. When I was present I felt like there was a warm quilt around me – like I belonged there.”
There have been times throughout the last two years where Andrea began to doubt herself and her academic career, when she thought she might not be able to continue her studies. “Without fail, at those times, one of my professors would email and check in,” she recounts. “Had that not been the case, I don’t know if I could have kept going – it made all the difference.”
Andrea knows that she will finish her degree and go on to complete a BSW. It may take a long time because of her incredible commitment to her community, but working in tandem also means she can bring her practical experience into the classroom, and vice-versa. Ultimately, Andrea says that her time at Renison has helped her to grow as a person. “The amazing ride of life is to grow and evolve,” she reflects. “Renison has given me a profound opportunity.”
This article was originally published as part of the 2022 edition of Renison Reports.
Learn more about It Takes a Village.
