our history
The Centre was incorporated in 1976 through resident involvement. After acquiring charitable status we started to receive funding in the 1970s. We became a United Way Toronto member in 1980 and expanded our services to include serving newcomers. The Centre had active participation and involvements with local groups and city-wide coalitions and networks. We developed Leaders-In-Training workshops that supported residents in advocating for their community. This program continued well into the nineties, before the creation of the ANC. We also worked with York University and other partners in establishing the Bridging Course for Women to help them transition into university studies.
In the 1990s, we developed a new mission statement and expanded our mandate to include youth. We added anti-racism programs, community speak-outs, and alcohol and drug prevention programs to our services. We also saw our ability to provide good jobs grow. During this time, we became the first community-based organization in Jane/Finch to establish an extended benefits plan, which included RRSP. This strengthened our infrastructure and encouraged others to follow. With our organization growing, we were able to secure two more units at our main office.
In the 2000s we opened our Early Years Centre, The Spot youth hub, launched Women Moving Forward and received funding from the United Way for Action for Neighborhood Change. During this time, we created a spectacular mural on the side of our offices at 4400 Jane Street that has become an identifiable fixture of the community. We put an emphasis on youth programs and enhanced our services for children 0 – 6 years old and we surveyed 400 residents to establish the priorities for the ANC. And as our programs grew, we also grew and expanded our presence to two more sites in the community.
In this last decade, we added Green Change, an environmental sustainability program, Settlement Services, a Financial Empowerment and Problem-Solving (FEPS) program and received funding to expand our Seniors program to serve 350 seniors. We expanded our services to two more sites, so that we are now offering programs out of 6 locations within the Jane/Finch community. And in 2016, we celebrated 40 years of service in the community and launched a new website, logo and branding that brings the six sites together in the promotion of our programs and services.