Big change in my career! I am honoured to accept the position of Social Inclusion Coordinator at the Greater Victoria Coalition to End Homelessness. I am taking some time to meet the folks I will be working with for the next chapter of my life, and they are amazing! I feel very lucky to be living in a community that is pulling together to take action on homelessness, and my job will be to facilitate the efforts and the voices of those who are or have experienced homelessness. This move comes at a time when I have personally come to see social inclusion as a prerequisite for ending homelessness. As I have said in many ways, people on the street are no different than anybody else, they just find themselves in circumstances beyond their control. I would also add that most homeless people have social connections, they simply lack housing connections.
This job is a big task, but I am up for it. After spending about 8 years in the front line of service provision, I have a strong understanding of the view from the ground, and I hope to use my knowledge to foster inclusion. We have a local Social Inclusion Advisory Committee made up of people who have experienced homelessness, and they are passionate, articulate, and self-empowering. It's such an honour to work with them...
