Shelter’s boosters shed tears of gratitude

Angels' Nest will be so much more than a home.

Angels’ Nest will be so much more than a home.

It’s that vision that young people, Youth of Today Society officials, volunteers, first nations and the Anglican diocese of the Yukon shared and spoke of Monday afternoon during an open house at the former Hide on Jeckell hostel.

The two-hour open house saw close to 50 people visit the downtown nine-bedroom facility.

During the event, it was announced the funding has been found to secure the society’s purchase that would turn the former hostel into a shelter for adults aged 18 to 24.

“This house will change so many lives,” an emotional Megan Dunbar, a youth worker with the society, told the crowd gathered in living room.

Tears streaming down her face, Dunbar said it is the youth who encourage the staff to continue pushing forward on initiatives like the shelter and put a smile on their faces everyday.

Beyond providing youth with a place to stay, the shelter needs to change lives, giving hope to youth and restoring their future, Dunbar said.

Justin Ferbey is a representative of the Carcross-Tagish First Nation who’s been volunteering on the shelter. He pointed out the shelter is taking a holistic approach to housing with plans to implement programming for the youth on food, employment and life and job skills development.

Other first nations involved in the shelter include the Kwanlin Dun, Na-cho Nyak Dun, the Teslin Tlingit Council and the Ta’an Kwach’an Council.

Individual cheques from first nations (with one being a joint effort by the Ta’an Kwach’an, Teslin Tlingit Council and Carcross-Tagish) of $6,500 will go toward buying the property. The Anglican church donated $30,000.

The cash means the society will now be in a lease-to-own agreement for the purchase of the $400,000 building.

As each party presented their cheques to three youth representing the society, representatives pointed to their hopes for the building.

“Our youth are our future leaders, and we have to take the steps necessary in order to support them and help them in the future because they’re the ones that will be taking our places,” Kwanlin Dun councillor Jessie Dawson said as she recalled her own time hanging out in the house as a young girl when one of her aunts owned the building.

“It really means something to be here doing this presentation,” she said.

Other first nation representatives, including Na-cho Nyak Dun Coun. Norma Germaine, Kwanlin Dun Coun. Ray Webb and Ferbey, also pointed to the benefits the shelter would bring to local youth struggling with homelessness.

Ferbey also pointed to an employment program offered last year which trained people on building log cabins.

First nations including the Ta’an Kwach’an, Teslin Tlingit Council and Carcross-Tagish, had two log cabins built that have now been donated to a raffle that’s now being organized to raise funds for Angels’ Nest.

Another upcoming fundraiser will see citizens able to donate just $1 to the cause.

“It’s projects like this that can make the Yukon exceptional in terms of investment in people,” Ferbey said.

Meanwhile, Bishop Terry Buckle told the group it was a unanimous decision of the church’s executive to put the money it had from the healing fund toward Angels’ Nest.

“We know that Angels’ Nest will be a blessing and a help to many people and will encourage our young people and we want that to happen,” he said.

Like Dunbar, it was an emotional time for Leetesha Wolkie, one of the three youth who accepted the cheques on behalf of the youth centre.

As she thanked all those involved with raising the approximately $100,000 needed to secure the building, she cried, knowing the society is that much closer to getting its shelter.

“There’s people in the world willing to help,” she said between tears.

Other speakers, including Youth of Today heads Lance Burton and Vicki Durrant and city officials, were also quick to point out that its the efforts of many that are moving the shelter forward.

After such a difficult year, Durrant said, she’s looking forward to hopefully spending Christmas at Angels’ Nest with the youth.

The shelter is named in memory of Angel Carlick, a teenager who was involved with the society and struggled with her own housing problems, before she went missing in November 2007.

Her body was found last spring in the Pilot Mountain subdivision.

With about a quarter of the funds needed for the building’s purchase, Ferbey said, work will now begin on an implementation plan and finding the approximately $400,000 needed to operate the shelter annually.

Although the territorial government turned down previous requests to help fund the shelter, the society plans to continue its requests, along with looking for cash from other organizations.

The implementation plan will look at exactly how many beds can be provided, more detailed programming and when the doors can open, Ferbey said.

The shelter has to be a safe, healthy environment for youth staying there, he added.

With the end of the formal speeches and cheque presentations, visitors began roaming around the three levels of the house, checking out the bedrooms on the three levels which all feature bunk beds.

The number of beds depend on the size of the room. While some of the smaller rooms have only a couple of beds, others have up to four.

Just how many will be there when the shelter opens will depend on what comes out of the implementation plan.

The house also features four bathrooms.

On the main floor is the front entry way into a cozy living room, complete with furniture and shelves filled with magazines, board games and books.

Behind the living room is the kitchen, which opens into a porch in the backyard.