McCarthy Tetrault Hollyburn volunteers at the ready!
Homeless seniors. These are two words that don’t sit comfortably together. Yet every month, the North Shore’s Hollyburn Family Services Society, funded in part by United Way, receives 400 phone calls from emergency service providers, hospitals or neighbours concerned about a homeless senior or a senior at housing risk. Up until now, explains Nanette Taylor, Executive Director of Hollyburn Family Services Society, they weren’t always able to help.
Now thanks to a The Vancouver Sun United Way Day of Caring that matched 30 volunteers from McCarthy Tétrault to a meaningful volunteer project, a house that had been slated for demolition has been transformed into transitional housing for vulnerable seniors. “United Way British Columbia came to our rescue providing us with a crew of eager volunteers through their Day of Caring. There is no way we could have done this without their help.These efforts are helping turn a house into a home for our most vulnerable citizens,” explains Nanette Taylor, Executive Director, Hollyburn Family Services.
The house was donated and is structurally sound but required a lot of work to transform it. The Lynn Valley Lions pulled up old carpet and flooring and have committed to paying utilities. The crew from McCarthy Tétrault worked together to clear out junk, clean the house, and paint the house. Not only that, they also raised an additional $8,000 to help Hollyburn deliver the program. “The stories I hear have really surprised me: police finding seniors living in a car or wandering the beach; seniors needing to flee abusive situations from their spouse or their children,” adds Nanette.
“Now when we get a call to provide help to a senior with nowhere to go, we can actually respond.”