Annual Report - Community Knowledge Centre - Toronto ...
Annual Report - Community Knowledge Centre - Toronto ...
Annual Report - Community Knowledge Centre - Toronto ...
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The Learning Enrichment Foundation<br />
<strong>Annual</strong> <strong>Report</strong>
The LEF family is<br />
made up of many faces.<br />
Rich expressions of determination, hope, reflecting<br />
deep relationships that enable change.<br />
Change found in …<br />
The thousands of individuals that<br />
look to us for support.<br />
Their faces deep with determination.<br />
Their children’s faces alight with laughter<br />
Full of hope and the future.<br />
The hundreds of employers<br />
Who support us financially, morally, and above all,<br />
commit to hiring locally<br />
The dozens of funders<br />
Whose trust we rely on to bridge the gaps found in<br />
community<br />
<strong>Community</strong> Neighbours<br />
Whose energy we leverage to make things richer<br />
and more vibrant<br />
The employees of LEF and their families<br />
Who remain determined to effect change<br />
Positive change, that builds on the strengths of<br />
Individuals<br />
Employers<br />
Funders<br />
And <strong>Community</strong><br />
This year’s<br />
annual report<br />
is a celebration<br />
of wealth.<br />
Wealth of spirit.<br />
Wealth of<br />
relationships.<br />
Wealth of family.<br />
Board of Directors<br />
2009-2010 EXECUTIVE:<br />
Ed Lamoureux – President<br />
Grace Nalbandian – Vice-President<br />
Rev. Louise Mahood – Vice-President<br />
Dr. Kathleen Macdonald – Secretary<br />
Fergy Brown – Past-President<br />
Members:<br />
Wendy Agnew<br />
Daniel Lang<br />
John Blair<br />
Bob Churchill<br />
Sam Cole<br />
Jennifer Venart-Sym<br />
Simon Jennings<br />
Devon MacDonald<br />
James McLeod<br />
Mike Wilder<br />
Ed Lamoureux<br />
Peter Frampton
The Learning Enrichment Foundation was<br />
founded more than 30 years ago to respond<br />
to the needs of the former city of York. Since<br />
its inception, LEF has developed a mix of<br />
programs and services, including; child care,<br />
youth programs, settlement services, language<br />
training, skills advancement programs and<br />
courses, employment services and community<br />
enterprises.<br />
Mission Statement<br />
The Learning Enrichment Foundation provides<br />
integrated and holistic community responsive<br />
initiatives that enable individuals and families<br />
to become valued contributors to their<br />
community’s social and economic development.<br />
Vision<br />
Our vision of the future is one of Healthy<br />
Communities that:<br />
• Enrich and empower all members<br />
• Celebrate diversity, are inclusive and<br />
• Provide a high quality of life<br />
To sustain our Healthy Communities, we<br />
envision, advocate, promote and work towards<br />
a vibrant and socially-responsible economy,<br />
providing:<br />
• Full and meaningful work<br />
• Accessible, high-quality child care<br />
• Lifelong learning opportunities and supports,<br />
and<br />
• Concerted efforts to eradicate poverty and<br />
engage its citizens<br />
Principles and Values<br />
We believe in:<br />
• The dignity, respect and value of individuals<br />
• Working to restore/enhance self-sufficiency<br />
and self-determination for clients<br />
• An inclusive community focus<br />
• Celebrating diversity<br />
• Justice and compassion<br />
• Integrity in programming and accountability to<br />
stakeholders<br />
• Promoting creativity and innovation<br />
• Collaboration, cooperation and sharing<br />
• Being proactive, flexible, multi-faceted and<br />
practical in our approach<br />
• Being responsive to community needs<br />
• Commitment, high professionalism and<br />
integrity of our staff<br />
Neighbourhood<br />
Strategy<br />
LEF provided a full range of supports for people<br />
who access our programs and services. In 2009:<br />
1,135 families accessed our child care services,<br />
enabling them to work without worry.<br />
632 youths were engaged in leadership and<br />
mentorship programs, with a total of 401<br />
recorded volunteer hours in those programs.<br />
624 first-time newcomer clients accessed<br />
settlement supports.<br />
LEF supported more than 500 newcomers with<br />
language training.<br />
328 people graduated from our training<br />
programs and over 70 per cent found<br />
employment within 16 short weeks of<br />
completing their courses.<br />
strategies for innovative supports. In 2009, we<br />
continued this work, while concentrating on<br />
providing increasingly mobile and integrated<br />
services. We are working to meet people where<br />
they are in the community.<br />
We also continued in 2009 to focus on our<br />
work around building relationships and<br />
breaking social isolation. The centerpiece of<br />
this is our new Town Square at the heart of<br />
our building. We acknowledged a lack of large<br />
community spaces in the Weston-Mount Dennis<br />
community, as well as functioning space at our<br />
116 Industry Street site. The Town Square is a<br />
15,000 square-foot space constructed with the<br />
help of community members, staff, clients and<br />
University of <strong>Toronto</strong> students, making this a<br />
space owned by more than LEF. Within a day<br />
of construction, this space became a vibrant<br />
meeting place, bustling with people. Even<br />
though construction has continued around this<br />
space, events, gatherings, lunches, meetings and<br />
graduations are regular happenings.<br />
Employee Retirements<br />
This year, LEF said goodbye to many<br />
talented and valued employees. We offer<br />
our sincerest thanks and best wishes to<br />
our friends:<br />
Retired Tenure at LEF Department<br />
Bill Russell October 2009 2 Years Youth HOST<br />
Velma Russell December 2009 14 Years Food Services<br />
Lucia Vargas January 2010 22 Years Child Care Services<br />
Abdirahman Kabiro April 2010 7.5 Years Maintenance<br />
Our employment services helped 415 people find<br />
employment. We continue to recruit for over 560<br />
companies.<br />
Individually, these supports are essential in our<br />
community. Together, they make a proverbial<br />
impact.<br />
In 2008, we explored ways of enhancing our<br />
services to break the cycles of poverty. We<br />
researched community needs, evaluated our<br />
services and moved forward with focused
Hidden:<br />
Newcomer experiences<br />
of homelessness at<br />
the Fred Victor <strong>Centre</strong><br />
and The Learning<br />
Enrichment Foundation<br />
In the fall of 2009, The Learning<br />
Enrichment Foundation and the Fred<br />
Victor <strong>Centre</strong> developed a short-term<br />
research project to better understand<br />
the experiences of homeless<br />
newcomers. The project, funded by<br />
Citizenship and Immigration Canada,<br />
was meant to discover how both<br />
organizations could more effectively<br />
address the housing and support needs<br />
of newcomers.<br />
39%<br />
Our Research<br />
1%<br />
The research provides a snapshot of the demographics,<br />
challenges and service pathways of<br />
homeless newcomers working with the Fred<br />
Victor <strong>Centre</strong> and The Learning Enrichment<br />
Foundation. It uncovers the professional development<br />
needs and service gaps within each<br />
organization.<br />
Statistical Findings<br />
13 %<br />
• 15 per cent of newcomers served through<br />
LEF’s newcomer services are homeless. The<br />
largest percentage of homeless newcomers<br />
was found in Newcomer Settlement Services,<br />
followed by Youth Services and Language<br />
Training.<br />
• 72 per cent of LEF’s homeless newcomers<br />
are women, speaking to the disproportionate<br />
number of immigrant women living in<br />
poverty.<br />
• 24 per cent of LEF’s homeless newcomers<br />
are under 24.<br />
25%<br />
9% 5% 6%<br />
Housed Shelter Fri/Fam Overcrowed Unsafe/Health Abuse Face Evicon<br />
• Most of LEF’s homeless newcomers, (57 per<br />
cent) speak Spanish as their first language.<br />
The other two most common languages<br />
spoken by LEF’s homeless newcomers are<br />
English and Somali. All three languages are<br />
reflective of LEF’s neighbourhood profile.<br />
• 87 per cent of our homeless newcomers are<br />
permanent residents or convention refugees.<br />
• The majority of LEF’s homeless newcomers<br />
have been in Canada for less than three years.<br />
Housing Conditions of LEF’s<br />
Homeless Newcomers<br />
• LEF newcomer clients who are currently<br />
housed are known to be on Ontario Works<br />
and paying market rent. This means that this<br />
group is spending more than 30 per cent of<br />
their income on housing, which makes them<br />
vulnerable to become homeless. Moreover,<br />
in the case of LEF, we see a considerable<br />
number of homeless newcomers are either<br />
staying with friends/families (13 per cent) or<br />
in overcrowded housing conditions. (25 per<br />
cent). We can conclude that this group continues<br />
to depend on their informal networks<br />
for housing survival and not on mainstream<br />
emergency housing services.<br />
• Of the 18 per cent of newcomers who stayed<br />
in shelters, nearly all stayed in refugee housing<br />
rather than mainstream shelters.<br />
• Seven per cent of newcomers reported abuse<br />
as the cause of their homelessness. These<br />
people were most often found in Language<br />
Training programs.<br />
Trends<br />
Affordability and lack of information emerged<br />
as the most prominent barriers to accessing or<br />
maintaining housing.<br />
The importance of informal networks also came<br />
out clearly as a dominant theme. Service users<br />
cited again and again that they get the majority<br />
of their information and housing support<br />
from family, friends, and faith or cultural<br />
communities.<br />
Recommendations<br />
• Develop partnerships between housing/homelessness<br />
and settlement services<br />
• Foster working relationships to share expertise,<br />
resources and referrals between housing/<br />
homelessness and settlement services<br />
• Assess feasibility to incorporate structured<br />
housing services in the new model of service<br />
delivery of LEF Newcomer Services<br />
• Strengthen collaboration of LEF Employment<br />
Services and Newcomer Services to address<br />
affordability barriers among other settlement<br />
issues<br />
• Modify LEF newcomer intake processes<br />
to identify newcomers housing needs and<br />
institutionalize and review record keeping<br />
systems to facilitate case management<br />
• Assess the effectiveness of past and existing<br />
housing initiatives and modify accordingly to<br />
meet newcomers’ various needs<br />
• Formalize participation in policy advocacy<br />
forums addressing the specific housing needs<br />
of newcomers<br />
• Increase awareness among LEF staff about<br />
appropriate resources and referrals for housing<br />
in the community<br />
• Provide basic housing training to strategic<br />
frontline workers<br />
• Develop relationships with housing agencies<br />
serving newcomers to share models of service<br />
delivery<br />
• Expand resources and information materials<br />
in languages other than English<br />
• Strengthen and review existing working relations<br />
with housing agencies, community legal<br />
clinics, landlord associations, newcomer reception<br />
centres, and other key players; create<br />
new relationships where appropriate<br />
• Increase awareness about the housing realities<br />
of newcomers throughout all LEF programs.<br />
• Conduct homeless awareness campaigns<br />
targeting all LEF programs modeling previous<br />
awareness campaigns such the Education<br />
Savings Incentive Program<br />
• Centralize LEF and the community’s housing<br />
resources and tools and make them<br />
available to all staff<br />
• Provide housing related training to staff<br />
working directly with newcomers<br />
• Tailor outreach and promotional activities to<br />
embrace informal networks including ethnospecific<br />
and religious communities in order to<br />
reach out to a greater number of newcomers<br />
within their first months (years) in the<br />
country.<br />
Moving forward, LEF will use this information<br />
to strengthen our work and partnerships to ensure<br />
the best possible experience for newcomers<br />
to Canada.
LEF<br />
Child Care:<br />
Innovation<br />
and Resilience<br />
with a Caring<br />
Heart<br />
History<br />
For over a quarter of a century, The Learning<br />
Enrichment Foundation has filled a community<br />
void by offering quality child care. Our service<br />
has evolved from simple preschool and schoolaged<br />
care into infant and toddler centres that are<br />
strategically connected to local high schools. This<br />
enables teen moms to continue their studies. Our<br />
newest Best Start centres are designed to build the<br />
perfect relationship between the schools and child<br />
care. At LEF, we recognize that each centre is a<br />
miniature community hub, a place for parents to<br />
connect with services that will help them realize<br />
their dreams and a place for children to get the<br />
head start they need to be successful in life.<br />
Vital Ideas<br />
The innovative work of The Learning Enrichment<br />
Foundation has been recognized by the <strong>Toronto</strong><br />
<strong>Community</strong> Foundation’s Vital Ideas program. In<br />
our plan, Curriculum Measurement for Vulnerable<br />
Communities, we are leveraging our work to<br />
understand more deeply the challenges of our<br />
neighbours. We’re building on LEF’s integrated,<br />
holistic curriculum that includes an enhanced<br />
literacy program. And we have partnered with<br />
Mothercraft to look very closely at the Early<br />
Development Index results of children in our<br />
centres. This information will be used in our<br />
curriculum to help boost the scores of the children<br />
we serve, ensuring that children in our care are<br />
better prepared for success within the school<br />
system.<br />
Child and Family Unit<br />
In response to the identified needs of families who<br />
use our child care centres, and to help us prepare<br />
for the impact of All-Day Learning on child<br />
care, LEF has created a Child and Family Unit<br />
that taps expertise from across the organization.<br />
We recognize that children will need more<br />
focused supports to prepare for an all-day school<br />
experience at age four. We know parents are in<br />
need of local resources that are easy to access<br />
during their busy lives. The Child and Family<br />
Unit will build that integrated response over the<br />
next few years, broadening LEF’s effect upon 33<br />
neighbourhoods across the old city of York and in<br />
North Etobicoke.<br />
As we look to the future, we are excited about the<br />
possibilities to be more effective. For example,<br />
the Family Grouping model of child care delivery<br />
will enable us to work intensively with families<br />
and their children from infants to preschool, in<br />
the same room with the same supportive staff.<br />
Our families would benefit from consistent parent<br />
education from the dedicated staff, right up until<br />
the moment children enter the school system.<br />
We are embracing change with an entrepreneurial<br />
spirit, a critical eye on local needs and a caring<br />
heart.
Moving Forward Strategy<br />
Highlights<br />
25 Good Ideas<br />
(Child Care Parent Engagement)<br />
The Neighbourhood Survey done in late 2008 revealed that only 34 per<br />
cent of parents spent five minutes or more in the child care centres. This<br />
indicates that parents are time stressed and therefore are not able to take<br />
the time to build relationships with other parents or staff at the child<br />
care centres. To encourage greater participation in centre events and<br />
activities, we provided each centre with a small budget to find unique<br />
ways to help parents build strong neighbourhood networks of friends.<br />
The ideas include; getting bouncers for school or site events, parent<br />
workshops or celebration nights, developing a book-lending library and<br />
building a Kindergarten readiness program in partnership with a school<br />
where a child care centre is located.<br />
These strategies bring parents together and help them begin the<br />
conversations that will lead to relationships. For those with many<br />
relationships in their lives, it is easy to forget how much support<br />
they provide in terms of sharing a meal, a ride or caring for children.<br />
Without these supports, families are increasingly stressed and socially<br />
isolated, leading to poorer mental and physical health. Creating greater<br />
connections to the community for parents and their children is the basic<br />
building block of a strong community.
Thank you<br />
to all Learning<br />
Enrichment<br />
Foundation<br />
employees<br />
At times, the strengths, dreams, skills and drive<br />
of those who come to us can be overwhelming.<br />
Yet, we do not get overwhelmed. We come<br />
together and support each other by pulling out<br />
all the stops, using all of our connections and<br />
intellect to lend a hand.<br />
At times, the reports, administrative minutiae,<br />
policies and procedures, criteria, rules and<br />
regulations can overwhelm us. Yet, we do not get<br />
overwhelmed. We band together, laugh through<br />
our shared experience and lend a helping hand.<br />
We get the job done.<br />
We have had the fortune to see rooms full-tobursting<br />
with laughter, camaraderie, love and<br />
respect. We have experienced so many moments<br />
when employees came together to achieve the<br />
impossible within impossible time frames.<br />
These are honours we all share. Thank you to our<br />
employees, who transform impossibility every<br />
day, and create the possible.<br />
Rubina ABBASI<br />
Shahira ABDEL-NOUR<br />
Priscilla ABOLOR<br />
Ikette ABOUSAWAN<br />
Halima ABUKAR<br />
Grace ADDAI<br />
Rita AGBASI<br />
Masooma AKBARI<br />
Najiba AKBARI<br />
Mansoureh ALASTI<br />
Amal ALI<br />
Saida ALI<br />
Waheeda ALI<br />
Peimaneh Serena ALIPOUR<br />
Margarida ALMEIDA<br />
Jamilah AMANZANI<br />
Augusta AMBOSTA<br />
Rose AMENHEN<br />
Shakara ANDEM<br />
Carmen ANDRADE<br />
Effie ANDRICOPOULOS<br />
Gloria ANUAT<br />
Melissa APPS<br />
Melanie ARAUJO<br />
Debbie ARCHER<br />
Asha ARORA<br />
Comfort ASANTEWAH<br />
Faustina ASARE<br />
Nana ASARE<br />
Ibyemi Christiana ASEBIODE<br />
Catherine ASPENLIEDER<br />
Arshia AZAM<br />
Zaiboon BACCHUS<br />
Darri BEAULIEU<br />
Olivia BEDAI-MANI<br />
Bidyutprava BEHERA<br />
Steliyana BELOVSKA<br />
Emirjeta BELSHI<br />
Andrew BENSKIN<br />
Omati BHAGALOO<br />
Suzana M. BIONDIC<br />
Rennai BLAIR<br />
Henrietta BOATENG<br />
Antonella BOSCO<br />
Jean-Marie BOUTOT<br />
Sandra P. BOYCE<br />
Beverley BRAHAM-SEWELL<br />
Darcea BRATHWAITE<br />
Benita BRUCE<br />
Michael BRYAN<br />
Liljana BUDINI<br />
Edith L. CABANAS<br />
Rosa Catalina CAMARGO<br />
Karen CAMPBELL<br />
R. Robin CAMPBELL<br />
Iva CELCIMA<br />
Carol CHARLES<br />
Kehkashan (Kacy) CHOHAN<br />
Varoodhini CHRYSOSTOM<br />
Joan CLARKE<br />
Andrea COCKRANE<br />
David COHEN<br />
Brima CONTEH<br />
Hyma CORBETTE<br />
Maria CORDEIRO<br />
Rose COULTON<br />
Colin COWIE<br />
Meghan Leigh CURRIE<br />
Lisa Yuen Man CRESSWELL-FUNG<br />
Marian CURTIN-BEDARD<br />
Grace DAMPSON<br />
Ethel DAUZ<br />
Leslie Ann DAVIS<br />
Angela DE BARTOLO<br />
Maria DE BELLIS<br />
Franca DE LUCA<br />
Joyce DEI<br />
Laura S. DELSOLE<br />
Louise DIKSCHEI<br />
Daniela DIPRIZIO<br />
Brenda DIXON<br />
Hilda B. D’JAN<br />
Juliana DONKOR<br />
Zamzam DUALE<br />
Sadia DUALEH<br />
Jerzy (Smokey) DYMNY<br />
Barbara A. EBERLEIN<br />
Augustina EDWARDS<br />
Fernander EDWARDS<br />
Osamudiamen EGHAREVBA<br />
Mirian ESPINOSA<br />
Carine EVANS<br />
Cheryl A. EVES<br />
Gladys EZO<br />
Stacey FACEY<br />
Julie FARQUHAR<br />
Naheed FATIMA<br />
Silvana FEMIA<br />
Rose FAMIYEH<br />
Natasha FERRARI<br />
Dainna L. FLETCHER<br />
Akosua FORIWA<br />
Peter A. FRAMPTON<br />
Anthone Akbar FUARD<br />
Hiranthi FUARD<br />
Maria Grazia GAGLIARDI<br />
Otensa GARDNER<br />
Neserita P. GASCON<br />
Lois GAYLE<br />
Jackie GEORGE<br />
Ruben GEORGE<br />
Tharshinee GERAD<br />
Sohaila GHAZHAVI<br />
Nermin GJERMENI<br />
Olesya GLEBA<br />
Alan GOLLOM<br />
Iryna GOLUBYEVA<br />
Maria GONZALEZ<br />
Mahiar GOORANI<br />
Lilieth GORDON<br />
Rita GORELENKO<br />
Ina GORISHTI<br />
Sally GRAYSON<br />
Marianne GREEN<br />
Wendell GRIFFITH<br />
Mira GUINCHO<br />
Ayaan GURE<br />
Dianangela GUTIERREZ<br />
Maylene HAMER<br />
Vincent HANEY<br />
Muhammad HANIF<br />
Rixie V. HARTMAN<br />
Abdi Abdullahi HASHISED<br />
Cajup HAXHIREXHA<br />
Colin A. HERCULES<br />
Robyn HOOGENDAM<br />
Andrew HOLETON<br />
Shawn HUGGINS<br />
Denise T. INCE<br />
Lilia ISAGUNDE-CROLLY<br />
Osman ISMAIL<br />
Telina JACKSON<br />
Mehri JALILVAND<br />
Janina JANCZURA<br />
Katri JANES<br />
Suranimalage JINADASA<br />
Natalee Antoinette JOHNSON<br />
Gorden JOYCE<br />
Rocio JURADO<br />
Nasrin KABIR<br />
Leili KAHEH<br />
Iwona KANAREK<br />
Ingrid KASSEE<br />
Balwinder KAUR<br />
Ji Hee KIM<br />
Claudia KING-MORGAN<br />
Teresa Renata KRUPA<br />
Comfort KYEI-BOATENG<br />
Hin-Wah (Ben) LAM<br />
Sherry L. LAWRENCE<br />
Jennifer LEE QUI<br />
Karen Pang LEE<br />
Thelma LEE<br />
Everit LEVY<br />
Yan Lydia LI<br />
Tania LINDO<br />
Suzanne LIOU-ROBINSON<br />
Judeen LONGMORE<br />
Eileen LONGSON<br />
Carminda LOPEZ<br />
Dorota MACZAK<br />
Deborah MACEDO<br />
Rehema MAINA<br />
Aimee MALANGYAON<br />
Josie MALFARA<br />
Navtej K. MAND<br />
Mitra MANI MOGHADDAM<br />
Bibi MARIAPEN<br />
Peter MARINELLI<br />
Helena MARSZALKOWSKI<br />
Maxine Madge MARTIN<br />
Elisa MARTINEZ<br />
Odelta MARTINEZ<br />
Sara MARTINS<br />
Cevoius MASSENAT<br />
Elizabeth MAVROIDIS<br />
Babur Mohammd MAWLADIN<br />
Shawn M. MC ARTHUR<br />
Janice T. K. MCGANN<br />
Coleen MCGRATH<br />
Patrick MCNAMARA<br />
Charlene MILLER<br />
Yota MINGO-ADAMS<br />
Carmen MIRANDA<br />
Sona MIRZOYAN<br />
Sabine MIZINGA<br />
Zahir MOHAMADHOSEN<br />
Rahma MOHAMED<br />
Carlene MONCRIEFFE<br />
Valentina MUKA<br />
Jeanette MURRAY-COCHRANE<br />
Naeema NABAVI<br />
Anna NADOLSKA<br />
Ida NDUNDA<br />
Jan NEUNDORF<br />
Michelle NICHOLLS<br />
Roda NOOR<br />
Blessing OKORODUDU<br />
Caitlin Linh ONG<br />
Joyce OSCAR-HARVE
Lori PACITTO-PECORA<br />
Sandra PARTIPILO<br />
Raymond PATTERSON<br />
Janet PAZ<br />
Adele E. PEDEN<br />
Carol T. PEMBERTON<br />
Lolita PERSAUD<br />
Svetlana PETROVIC<br />
Gail PIERRE<br />
Yanira POLANCO<br />
Densil PROSPER<br />
Thilagaranee PULENDRAN<br />
Nooria RAHIM<br />
Linette RAMPAUL<br />
Bebi Fazia RASUL<br />
Clevelett REID<br />
Tinesha REID<br />
Art REKHTIN<br />
Heather M. REPTON<br />
Pamela RICHARDSON<br />
Antonia Angela RIITANO<br />
Geraldine RILEY<br />
Fernando RIVAS<br />
Patrice ROBERTSON<br />
Mirtha RODRIGUEZ SANCHEZ<br />
Jenes V. ROSE<br />
Yamuna Davy ROSE<br />
Irene RUSSELL<br />
Anisa SALEH<br />
Marlene SALMON<br />
Gaile SALTMIRAS<br />
Cathy SAMA<br />
Susan SANTIAGO<br />
Yalda SHAMS<br />
Patricia SHEPHERD<br />
Sham SHIVPRASAD<br />
Olufunke SHOYEBO<br />
Carol SIDLE<br />
Shivanie SINGH<br />
Brenda F. SMALL<br />
Madeline SMITH<br />
Sylvia SMITH<br />
Trisha SMITH<br />
Catherine SONE<br />
Shanti SOOKNANAN<br />
Eda SPAHO<br />
Neli STAMENOVA<br />
Raybourne H. STEPHENS<br />
Stella STEPHENS<br />
Jadwiga STEPNIEWSKI<br />
Lydia STOUTEN<br />
Vicky STRANGES<br />
Daniella SUAREZ<br />
Shairoze SULTAN<br />
Sandra SUTTON<br />
Magdalena SZMYGIN<br />
Wazda TABASSUM<br />
Silvana TAFAJ-DIBRA<br />
Donna M. TAYLOR<br />
Terresa TAVENER<br />
Irina TAZETDINOVA<br />
Dianne C. TEMPLE<br />
Sunita THAKUR<br />
Delrose THOMAS<br />
Louisa THOMAS<br />
Maureen THOMPSON<br />
Sindy TORRES<br />
Loc Huu Trinh TRAN<br />
Enza TRAVISANO<br />
Claudette TRIM<br />
Marcia TYLER<br />
Katarina URBANSKI<br />
Gordana UROSEVIC<br />
Jovana UROSEVIC<br />
Maris USIFOH<br />
Silvana VALENTONE<br />
Linh Kiet VAN<br />
Alexandra VERGIS<br />
Louis VIENS<br />
Sunita WADHERA<br />
Jane WAIHENYA<br />
Fereene WALKER<br />
Marion E.L. WHARTON<br />
Paulette WHITTAKER<br />
Emetta WHYTE<br />
Tanya WILSON<br />
Cecilia WILLCOCKS<br />
Clohe V. WILLIAMS<br />
Gwendolyn WOOLERY<br />
Lin Lin WU<br />
Juanita D. YUNDT<br />
Etleva ZABZUNI<br />
Katherine ZAMBRANO<br />
Aghdas ZARIF NEGAHBAN<br />
Erin ZARZECZNY<br />
Sofia ZENGUELE<br />
Cooks Training<br />
VALERIE BRAITHWAITE<br />
has been cooking for 20 years. She likes<br />
to think of herself as a baker. Her pies have<br />
won blue ribbons at fall fairs. And oh, if<br />
only her butter tarts could sing.<br />
She came to The Learning Enrichment<br />
Foundation to learn to cook “properly.”<br />
“It was like learning to play piano by ear<br />
and then learning how to do it the classical<br />
way,” she said.<br />
Braithwaite graduated in April as the top<br />
student in her Cooks Training class.<br />
All the students call her Mama. She was<br />
the oldest one in the class, by a generation.<br />
And the nickname she earned seemed just<br />
right to her.<br />
“It was so rewarding,” she said. “Because<br />
they all felt like family.”<br />
The four-month Cooks Training program<br />
responds to the tremendous potential for<br />
employment in restaurants, hotels, health<br />
care institutions, schools and many others.<br />
Students are taught essential aspects of<br />
food handling and food preparation in<br />
small classes that allow for a great deal<br />
of individual attention and 385 hours of<br />
practical experience in the kitchen.<br />
Graduates receive certification as a cook’s<br />
assistant, in food handling, WHMIS<br />
training, first aid and propane handling.<br />
A partnership between LEF and Second<br />
Harvest allows the students in our cooks<br />
training program to prepare 500 meals<br />
every day for local homeless shelters.<br />
Donations from Second Harvest are also<br />
shared with our clients through food<br />
giveaways and are prepared for use at<br />
community events.<br />
Braithwaite said it was exciting to discover<br />
that she’s going to be a bit of a different<br />
cook now than the one she’s been all her<br />
life. She will add more specialty desserts to<br />
her menu.<br />
And on graduation day, she was one step<br />
away from having a job lined up, doing<br />
what she loves to do. Cooking.<br />
“I think they are a solid caliber of<br />
students,” said Nancy Hall, director of<br />
development for Second Harvest.<br />
Hall said it’s encouraging that the cooks<br />
training program enjoys an 85 per cent job<br />
placement among graduates.<br />
Chef Patrick McNamara – the students<br />
call him “Our Chef” – urged his class to<br />
continue their studies, to read every book<br />
on cooking that they find, and to learn from<br />
anyone they can in order to keep up to date<br />
with changes in the fast-paced industry.
LEFTek<br />
Solutions<br />
LEFTek Solutions provides IT support for LEF’s more<br />
than 300 employees and has managed 61 <strong>Community</strong><br />
Access Program (CAP) sites in partnership with seven<br />
community groups across <strong>Toronto</strong> and the surrounding<br />
areas. The CAP network is funded by Industry Canada<br />
and endeavours to narrow the ‘digital divide’ by<br />
providing Internet access in communities where the<br />
rates of unemployment are higher and access to the<br />
Internet is limited.<br />
CAP works because of the dedication of volunteers.<br />
Mr. Daryl Hobbs is one of those extraordinary<br />
individuals who, for over a decade, has made the<br />
Parliament St. CAP site a vibrant centre of learning,<br />
access and experimentation. For Daryl, sustainability<br />
has always meant not needing the service. And that<br />
has led him and his volunteers to experiment with the<br />
provision of wireless services in the Cabbagetown<br />
community. One building is not enough for the<br />
Parliament St. site. Today, they are building the plans<br />
and securing the partnerships to make broadband<br />
Internet services available to the whole community –<br />
especially to the most vulnerable.<br />
LEF would like to thank Daryl for the passion he has<br />
shown and his dedication to Internet provision.<br />
Research and<br />
<strong>Community</strong><br />
Development<br />
At The Learning Enrichment Foundation, we believe<br />
in research that is grounded in the needs of the<br />
community.<br />
To that end, LEF created a research department that<br />
works across the many other LEF departments and<br />
initiates outreach to the community to ensure an<br />
ongoing, thorough examination of community needs,<br />
program impacts and opportunities for innovation.<br />
We know that effective research must be grounded in<br />
practice, and must inform our practise and direction.<br />
While we all have a deep understanding of the<br />
poverties, we have identified the Poverty of Time<br />
as a key component of the isolation so many people<br />
feel.<br />
From that recognition has grown a dynamic array of<br />
community-led initiatives, reflected in a small way in<br />
this report.<br />
This work has been generously supported by the<br />
Metcalf Foundation.
Employment<br />
Services<br />
This was a pivotal year.<br />
For the City of <strong>Toronto</strong> alone, the<br />
unemployment rate skyrocketed to 9.9 per cent,<br />
the highest it has been in over 14 years. That<br />
means 1 out of every 10 <strong>Toronto</strong>nians were<br />
unemployed.<br />
The jobless dilemma took on new meaning<br />
for many of us. This unemployment statistic<br />
represented our friends, relatives, co-workers<br />
and neighbours – people who had never been<br />
unemployed before or were always successful<br />
in finding the next job. Most of these folks had<br />
years of Canadian experience, excellent English<br />
communication, advanced and transferrable<br />
skills and a comprehensive understanding of<br />
our business culture. These same people were<br />
having trouble finding work.<br />
Newcomers to Canada and others with<br />
significant employment challenges faced<br />
an almost insurmountable situation. LEF’s<br />
Employment Services had to meet this need:<br />
• Customized every workshop to provide solid<br />
help for job seekers<br />
• Targeted organizations aligned with our training<br />
programs<br />
• Cultivated sustainable relationships with employers<br />
for ongoing job opportunities<br />
Top Employers<br />
Adecco/Celestica<br />
G4S Security Solutions<br />
Akkryl Industries<br />
Gemma Communications<br />
Alpha Text Books<br />
Goldrich Printpak<br />
Appolo 8<br />
Home Depot<br />
Aramark<br />
Hudson Bay Company<br />
Bennington Heights Childcare<br />
Irving Tissue<br />
Braeburn Woods Childcare<br />
Ina Grafton Gage Home<br />
Buc Shelter<br />
Just Kids Childcare Center<br />
Canadian Standard Associates<br />
Katz Deli<br />
Canadian Technology College<br />
Lady Bud Daycare<br />
Chain Reaction Bicycles<br />
Leda Furniture<br />
Myron Smarter Business Gifts<br />
North American Tea & Coffee<br />
One Step at a Time Childcare<br />
Parents for better Beginnings<br />
Philips Lifeline<br />
ProMobility Wireless<br />
Rex Pak Ltd<br />
Royal Envelope/Alliance Envelope<br />
Spokes & Sports<br />
Thane Direct<br />
The Bargain Group<br />
• Initiated networking groups and events for<br />
connections and support<br />
Children are People Childcare<br />
CHORD Housing Co-Operative<br />
Leisure World<br />
Let’s Work Labour Force<br />
The Old Mill Inn & Spa<br />
UPS<br />
• Maintained coaching sessions for those with<br />
specialized needs<br />
To serve effectively, we must help people<br />
believe in themselves, believe in their strengths<br />
and believe in their value.<br />
The person who comes to us has the courage to<br />
ask for help. He learns how to write a resume.<br />
He lives in a rooming house next to a friend<br />
who also doesn’t have a job. And she needs help<br />
too. So the skills learned at LEF are passed on<br />
in the community. It builds hope.<br />
Clover Tool Manufacturing<br />
Delta Chelsea<br />
Forest Hill Place<br />
Form Glass<br />
Fred Victor<br />
Little Hearts Childcare<br />
Martin Luther Church Day Nursery<br />
Metro Canada Logistics<br />
Metro News<br />
Moreau Property Services<br />
VHA Home Healthcare<br />
Vitrans<br />
Voxdata Call <strong>Centre</strong> Inc.<br />
West Side Cycle<br />
World Network Business Club (WNBC)<br />
That’s how we measure real success.
Week of<br />
Service<br />
Two young women rest against a wall that once<br />
rippled to the unique sound of a classroom of people<br />
learning a new language. The concrete floor is<br />
carpeted in drywall dust and scarred with the shadow<br />
of what had been. To the left, a large pile of twisted<br />
steel lay in contemplation of 30 years.<br />
The students are admiring their work.<br />
Both women are studying architecture in their first<br />
year at the University of <strong>Toronto</strong>. One day, they will<br />
lead a project like this. Hours ago, they helped tear<br />
apart what stood here. And a moment ago, they added<br />
bright yellow paint to the opposite wall. It was one of<br />
the walls left standing during two days of demolition<br />
and rebuilding at The Learning Enrichment<br />
Foundation.<br />
The students linger long enough to reflect on having<br />
never experienced anything like this. Then they pick<br />
up their paintbrushes again. Another wall. This time,<br />
orange.<br />
They were among more than 200 university students<br />
who gave up three days of their reading week to<br />
volunteer on more than 60 community projects that<br />
support the goals of LEF. The Week of Service:<br />
Building <strong>Community</strong> is another project with the<br />
University of <strong>Toronto</strong>’s <strong>Centre</strong> for <strong>Community</strong><br />
Partnerships.<br />
Working with children. Working with plants.<br />
Participating in educational workshops, fitness,<br />
festivals and musical events. Learning to cook.<br />
Working in a women’s shelter. And ripping down<br />
walls to create a new indoor Town Square, the<br />
centrepiece of the renovation at LEF.<br />
These projects introduced students, who may have<br />
seldom left the U of T St. George campus area, to<br />
a priority community facing the many challenges<br />
of poverty. With energy, enthusiasm and laughter,<br />
students make their mark at the heart of our<br />
community.<br />
And everyone makes their<br />
marks on hardhats.<br />
To open the Week of Service, the students and LEF<br />
staff decorate hardhats with paint and glitter, pipe<br />
cleaners, feathers, colourful shapes, lettering and a<br />
lot of glue. It’s a whimsical kickoff to the event, a<br />
creative way to come together and begin to know<br />
each other well.<br />
It’s February 16. The students are bused from U of<br />
T in downtown <strong>Toronto</strong> to LEF, in the former city of<br />
York. It’s registration day. Welcomes and nametags<br />
and tours and schedules and two hours of bustling<br />
creativity. Called together, we’re wearing our hard<br />
hats. We’re grinning at each other. We’re a team.<br />
It’s going to be work. And students traditionally take<br />
some time away from their studies during this week.<br />
Maybe in Florida. Maybe in a beach bar somewhere.<br />
But the tan fades. And the hangover fades.<br />
“The experience and the opportunities and what<br />
you’re giving back will not fade,” Lucy Fromowitz,<br />
assistant vice-president for student life at U of T,<br />
tells the student gathering. “This is a very significant<br />
week. Working in a community is probably the most<br />
satisfying work you will ever do.”<br />
“What you will find is a community that is strong<br />
in its heart and strong in its sense of self,” LEF<br />
Executive Director Peter Frampton tells the students.<br />
Fergy Brown, former mayor of York and former<br />
president of LEF, offers the students a history<br />
lesson on the economic devastation of York, which<br />
contributed to how the community came to be the<br />
second poorest riding in Ontario.<br />
From here, and for the next two days, the students<br />
fan out across our neighbourhood to participate in<br />
the life of LEF. And in the lives of people they may<br />
never have otherwise known.<br />
We have already begun planning for Week of Service<br />
2011. While this will not centre around building the<br />
Town Square as it did this year, we will continue to<br />
have a focus on community building. We expect the<br />
2011 event will involve more students, more staff,<br />
more community partners and community members,<br />
all proposing and participating in projects.<br />
This program has been a fantastic opportunity to<br />
strengthen our relationship with the University of<br />
<strong>Toronto</strong>, in particular the <strong>Centre</strong> for <strong>Community</strong><br />
Partnerships. We wish to thank the centre for this<br />
opportunity, for all the support they provided and for<br />
the belief in LEF that this event could be the great<br />
success that it was.
Week of<br />
Service
Winter Celebration<br />
Events Management<br />
The paint on the accent walls wasn’t even dry<br />
when our friends began to arrive.<br />
On the evening of the last day of the Week of<br />
Service, the newly-created Town Square was<br />
the site of our Winter Celebration. The event<br />
marked the end of our 30th anniversary, the<br />
beginning of our new look and the coming<br />
together of new friends and those who have been<br />
with The Learning Enrichment Foundation for<br />
many years.<br />
It was also a thank you to the 200 University of<br />
<strong>Toronto</strong> students who joined us for the Week of<br />
Service and helped make so many things happen<br />
in our community.<br />
As the winter sun set, a DJ played music to the<br />
twirl of coloured lights. And we were treated<br />
with musical performances from our friends,<br />
including guitarist Vin Heney of Youth HOST<br />
and the guitar trio The Stormalongs, featuring<br />
Matthew Thompson of CCEDNet.<br />
A feast was prepared by our own kitchen staff.<br />
And many child care workers joined us with<br />
their own children to decorate hard hats and join<br />
in the celebration of our new creation at 116<br />
Industry St.<br />
While the LEF Town Square was far from<br />
complete, we were all able to see the potential of<br />
this space and the amazing work that had been<br />
done in only two days. We could see the dream<br />
to come.<br />
Our expert team of specialists at The Learning<br />
Enrichment Foundation provide the support<br />
necessary to ensure a successful and memorable<br />
event.<br />
They excel at collaboration and have broad<br />
expertise in successfully weaving together<br />
expectations and outcomes. This year’s events<br />
included:<br />
• LINC Childminding Conference with 300<br />
delegates<br />
• <strong>Annual</strong> dotcom Classic Golf Tournament with<br />
over 200 participants<br />
• Higher Level Language Training (HLLT)<br />
Conference with 200 delegates<br />
• The Week of Service<br />
• Internationally-Trained Doctors Forum<br />
• Dozens of community events
Immigrant Settlement Assistance Program<br />
Highlights<br />
Other ISAP Achievements:<br />
Sharing our Expertise:<br />
Canadian Financial Securities Course<br />
This volunteer-led initiative began as a<br />
pilot project during the spring of 2009. And<br />
because of the commitment and interest of the<br />
newcomer community, we decided to offer<br />
a new course in the fall. In total, 21 students<br />
graduated from this training program. At<br />
the end of each session, students seem more<br />
confident about their understanding about<br />
the Canadian financial system and are ready<br />
to write the Canadian Financial Securities<br />
Examination.<br />
From January to Dec 2009:<br />
• Provided one-on-one settlement-related<br />
information to a total of 624 newcomers: (286<br />
newcomers within their first year in Canada<br />
and to 338 newcomers after their first year in<br />
Canada.)<br />
• Facilitated 35 workshops/information<br />
sessions on various settlement matters such<br />
as immigration, early childhood development,<br />
the Canadian income tax system, Ontario’s<br />
Employment Standards Act and professional<br />
accreditation.<br />
• Conducted three series of training sessions<br />
for newcomers:<br />
• Two sets of Canadian Citizenship Classes<br />
(two from April to June 2009 and one from<br />
October to December 2009)<br />
• Two sets of computer classes (spring and fall)<br />
• Two Canadian Financial Securities Courses<br />
(one from April to June 2009 and one from<br />
October 2009 to February 2010)<br />
• From April to December 2009, we provided<br />
occasional child care services for families<br />
who participated in our computer, citizenship,<br />
African women’s groups and the Canadian<br />
Financial Securities Courses. In total, 90<br />
children attended OCC while their parents<br />
attend these groups and training activities.<br />
• One of our settlement counsellors<br />
facilitated a training session on settlement<br />
issues for childminders at the 2009<br />
National LINC Childminding Conference.<br />
• One of our settlement counsellors<br />
facilitated a training session for<br />
Mothercraft’s online professional<br />
development course for settlement<br />
workers.<br />
• Our settlement/entrepreneurship counsellor<br />
has spoken at four conferences, four other<br />
business events, appeared at two job fairs<br />
and one trade show reaching over 250<br />
individuals and promoting our programs<br />
at LEF more organically. Some of the<br />
events participated in include; Enterprise<br />
<strong>Toronto</strong>, Vaughan Small Business Expo,<br />
SISO Conference in Hamilton, the Career<br />
Foundation and COSTI’s Job Support<br />
Worker’s Conference.
Youth HOST<br />
“My Magic Hands” performances took place<br />
during the summer and winter of 2009 at Weston<br />
Road and continued with performances for the<br />
March Break child care camp and at the <strong>Annual</strong><br />
General Meeting in May 2009. Youth from the<br />
LINC Childminding Summer Camp for schoolaged<br />
children also brought their magical talents<br />
to LEF last summer. What courage it takes to<br />
perform such feats in public!<br />
The Youth HOST Soccer League took place<br />
during July and August 2009. Connections are<br />
made during friendly and competitive matches<br />
with teams from other Youth HOST agencies in<br />
the Greater <strong>Toronto</strong> Area.<br />
Winter Survival Night was a huge success. In<br />
December 2009, many newcomer families came<br />
to LEF’s 1267 Weston Road location to learn<br />
what a Canadian winter was all about – and<br />
how to dress for it. A holiday meal was served,<br />
warm clothing was given away and Youth<br />
HOST celebrated the launch of its community<br />
programs.<br />
Job support for youth was a priority. Preemployment<br />
workshops, individual resumewriting<br />
support, job search resources and an<br />
impressive Youth Job Fair, were held to help<br />
youth find work. At the job fair in March 2010,<br />
11 local employers took resumes and questions<br />
from more than 260 participants.<br />
BizCamp ran twice this year, with over 25<br />
students thinking through their business ideas<br />
very thoroughly.<br />
The youth also put together their own one-day<br />
sale, which helped them visualize and put into<br />
practice some of the business lessons taught and<br />
learned during the sessions, including;<br />
• Marketing strategies<br />
• Pricing<br />
• How to showcase a product<br />
• How to approach a potential buyer
International Doctors Network (IDN)<br />
The International Doctors Network is an initiative that<br />
arose from The Learning Enrichment Foundation’s selfstudy<br />
group of international medical graduates.<br />
Partner Profiles<br />
In 2008, seven doctors began meeting at LEF to improve<br />
their English-language skills and study for Canadian<br />
medical exams.<br />
Achievement Through Partnership<br />
The backbone of our success is the strength<br />
of the partnerships we’ve built with over 300<br />
organizations and 65 networks. Together, we’re<br />
creating meaningful opportunities for one of<br />
Ontario’s poorest communities. We want to take<br />
this opportunity to thank all of them for their<br />
contributions.<br />
Social Purpose Enterprise Network -<br />
<strong>Toronto</strong><br />
SPEN <strong>Toronto</strong> is a self-managed network of<br />
social purpose enterprise (SPE) managers<br />
and practioners in <strong>Toronto</strong>, funded through<br />
a combination of membership dues and the<br />
support of the <strong>Toronto</strong> Enterprise Fund/United<br />
Way of Greater <strong>Toronto</strong>. Founded in 2006 with<br />
a primary purpose of providing a voice and<br />
strategies for SPE managers, SPEN <strong>Toronto</strong>’s<br />
mission is to grow social purpose enterprise in<br />
the Greater <strong>Toronto</strong> Area.<br />
SPEN <strong>Toronto</strong> provides business networking and<br />
peer support opportunities for enterprise staff,<br />
including collaborative marketing opportunities<br />
and professional development events. Bringing<br />
a long history of experience and entrepreneurial<br />
spirit, LEF is proud to be a SPEN <strong>Toronto</strong><br />
member and is active on the SPEN <strong>Toronto</strong><br />
steering committee, as well as providing the<br />
network with support in financial administration.<br />
Change <strong>Toronto</strong><br />
Change <strong>Toronto</strong> is a network of representatives<br />
from social service sector, government and<br />
business as well as people with lived experience<br />
of homelessness. They work together to find<br />
innovative and collaborative approaches to<br />
addressing homelessness in <strong>Toronto</strong>. Change<br />
<strong>Toronto</strong> provides opportunities for discussion,<br />
idea sharing and action on the causes, impacts<br />
and solutions to homelessness in <strong>Toronto</strong>.<br />
Central to Change <strong>Toronto</strong> is the belief that<br />
in order to find new and effective solutions to<br />
homelessness, multiple stakeholders need to<br />
be involved. Most importantly, people who<br />
have first-hand experience with homelessness<br />
need to have an active role in developing and<br />
implementing these solutions.<br />
LEF has been a member of Change <strong>Toronto</strong><br />
since 2007 and has participated in many<br />
collaborations through this committee. We are<br />
proud to be a part of this innovative committee.<br />
The network was created in response to the need to<br />
formalize the work of this study group and to provide more<br />
specialized support to its members.<br />
Since its creation, the group has grown from 18 to 45<br />
registered members. The IDN serves as a social and<br />
professional network that provides internationally-trained<br />
doctors access to professional supports in their field. It<br />
also connects them to the various dimensions of Canadian<br />
society. The doctors hope the networking and shared<br />
experience will assist them to break into medical jobs in<br />
Canada.<br />
Members participate in many events, such as<br />
conversational circles, mentorship opportunities,<br />
information exchanges, social networking and leadership<br />
projects.<br />
On March 25, the first IDN forum was held at the LEF<br />
Town Square with the attendance of over 60 participants.<br />
This full-day conference of guest speakers and discussion<br />
groups was the first step in structuring this professional<br />
network. Developed by Dr. Kennedy Palmares and Dr.<br />
Fernando Rivas, the forum is expected to be held annually.<br />
Thank you SPEN <strong>Toronto</strong>!<br />
Thank you Change <strong>Toronto</strong>!<br />
LEF will continue to work with this group in order to<br />
advance the professional needs of internationally-trained<br />
doctors.
Networking at<br />
the Foundation/<br />
Entrepreneurship<br />
family album By Meghan Currie<br />
In early 2009, we launched our<br />
entrepreneurship program at The<br />
Learning Enrichment Foundation.<br />
The aim of the entrepreneurship<br />
training program is twofold:<br />
• To establish LEF as a centre of<br />
excellence for small business<br />
training and development.<br />
• To make available a variety of<br />
training and development programs<br />
that makes sense to our community.<br />
Our networking events offer<br />
topical guest speakers and valuable<br />
opportunities for networking. An<br />
average of 300 people attended<br />
during the most recent 10 sessions<br />
in 2009-2010. The goal of our<br />
networking events is to build<br />
community and capacity among<br />
local entrepreneurs, particularly<br />
newcomers.<br />
Our guest speakers included <strong>Toronto</strong><br />
Argonaut Willie Pile, inspirational<br />
speaker Jennifer Hough, business<br />
development specialist Curt Skene<br />
and authors Sonia Ricotti, Ross<br />
Reck and Murray Smith. Topics have<br />
covered sales, success, motivation,<br />
human resources, team building,<br />
marketing and the law of attraction.<br />
We are also the only small business<br />
program in the Greater <strong>Toronto</strong><br />
Area to focus on those new to<br />
Canada. Programs include our Start<br />
Smart sessions, which provide an<br />
understanding about what it takes<br />
to start a business. Our Start Smart<br />
series of seminars have served over<br />
150 people.<br />
Since May 2009, three sessions of<br />
our 13-week small business training<br />
program supported over 40 new<br />
business start-ups. About 16 of those<br />
are run by newcomers to Canada.<br />
Participants in our programs learn<br />
about selling, marketing, financing,<br />
business planning, banking and more.<br />
Participants also develop a business<br />
plan, receive coaching, mentorship<br />
and peer-to-peer learning.<br />
In my first few weeks at LEF, I often heard<br />
the name of Eunice Grayson, our founder and<br />
executive director for 27 years. Her name was<br />
always spoken with boundless affection and<br />
respect. Sometimes, with tears.<br />
I never knew Eunice. I so wish I had. But I<br />
have come to feel as though I know her work.<br />
Our work.<br />
One day, I found myself in the development<br />
room, snooping through the family albums.<br />
I’m told that Eunice wouldn’t have had much<br />
use for pictures of our work. To her, it was<br />
the day-to-day work itself that was important.<br />
But I was new here. And history is a<br />
journalist’s work. I needed a few memories.<br />
I scanned through the albums. Yellowed<br />
photographs on sticky yellowed backgrounds<br />
and pressed in cellophane. Pictures of former<br />
students. Celebrations of the old LEF Wood<br />
Works program. Album after album. Most of<br />
them meant to mark the 25th anniversary of<br />
LEF.<br />
There’s a little dust on the shelf and I can’t<br />
help but smile. Dust knows a good story when<br />
it sees one.<br />
In one of the albums, only one, there’s a<br />
story pasted to one of those sticky pages.<br />
It was written by a woman named Natasha.<br />
She talks about coming from Russia at age<br />
13 and living on the streets in Canada for<br />
years, unable to find work, living in parks and<br />
sleeping on hot air vents. She dreamed simple<br />
dreams: Waking up in the morning in a warm<br />
bed, with clean blankets and pillows. Going<br />
to her own kitchen to make herself a nice<br />
breakfast.<br />
“I was tired of being dirty and hungry and<br />
cold all the time,” Natasha wrote. “I had<br />
no friends . . . and I didn’t fit in anywhere<br />
because nobody understood me and I didn’t<br />
understand anybody. I thought a lot about<br />
going back.”<br />
Eventually, Natasha came to LEF to learn<br />
a trade. She learned how to drive a forklift.<br />
And she hoped to learn about welding and<br />
electricity. She had always wanted to learn to<br />
work with her hands and break into the kinds<br />
of jobs only boys were allowed to do. She<br />
wanted to be a carpenter. Or an electrician.<br />
Her story rang in my ears as I listened to<br />
something Donald C. MacDonald said<br />
on a video presentation about LEF that I<br />
found later that day on another shelf in<br />
the development room. He talked about<br />
accessibility being the hallmark of The<br />
Learning Enrichment Foundation.<br />
Natasha had the courage to ask for help. She<br />
found us. She found what she was looking for<br />
at LEF. I don’t know anything else about her<br />
either. I hope she’s well.<br />
I think Eunice was right. It’s the work that’s<br />
important. And there are plenty of memories<br />
to come.<br />
For now, let’s take a look back at the faces of<br />
that work. Please enjoy these memories, from<br />
the Family Album.
family album
Language Training<br />
LEF Language Instruction for Newcomers to Canada (LINC)<br />
program provides targeted, holistic and responsive services<br />
to clients who come to LEF for English language training.<br />
We recognize that language acquisition is only the first<br />
step in the settlement experience and ensure programming<br />
is consistent with client needs by working closely with<br />
LEF’s newcomer settlement program to assist newcomers to<br />
become fully engaged and active participants in Canadian<br />
society.<br />
LINC serves over 185 newcomer adults and 40 children<br />
daily.<br />
LINC offers eight levels (Literacy to Level Seven) of<br />
free English language classes to landed immigrants and<br />
convention refugees.<br />
LINC is a vibrant part of the LEF family, with students<br />
participating in all areas of LEF life and contributing greatly<br />
to the spirit of LEF.<br />
Field Trips This year, we had new and creative field trips for<br />
LINC clients that emphasized the understanding of Canadian<br />
culture. Many <strong>Toronto</strong> citizens have not experienced all<br />
the city has to offer. Through these trips we provide an<br />
opportunity to understand their city and integrate into<br />
the local culture. Field Trips have included outings to the<br />
<strong>Toronto</strong> Zoo, the CN Tower, <strong>Toronto</strong> Archives, Casa Loma,<br />
Niagara Falls, <strong>Centre</strong> Island, Black Creek Pioneer Village,<br />
the Royal Ontario Museum, Police Museum, Bruce’s Mill<br />
Sugarbush and the Ontario Science <strong>Centre</strong>.<br />
Workshops and Activities Our LINC program had an<br />
increased number of activities and workshops this year. We<br />
hosted workshops, events and speakers on environmental<br />
issues and had bake sales and garage sales to raise<br />
emergency funds for food, clothing and transportation for<br />
LINC and LEF clients. We also strengthened our partnership<br />
with Service Canada by having service kiosks available on<br />
site at LEF to address newcomer issues. We had cultural<br />
sharing by joining all clients together for an EID celebration.<br />
All of these activities built skills, strengthened relationships<br />
and helped introduce LINC clients to Canadian culture.<br />
Summer School-Age Program This year, we once again<br />
saw our summer camp program succeed, with more demand<br />
than spots were available for children. New activities in<br />
the last year included the Magic Hands program which is<br />
magic training for children, teddy bear creation, a reptile<br />
demonstration, arts and crafts, theme days, movies, cooking<br />
classes, field trips and more. All these activities served<br />
to integrate children into the <strong>Toronto</strong> community, while<br />
teaching them fun activities and skills.<br />
<strong>Community</strong> Impact:<br />
Language training is an essential service within our<br />
community because six per cent of the population has no<br />
knowledge of English or French.<br />
LEF’s LINC program promotes greater civic engagement<br />
and social inclusion of newcomers by providing<br />
opportunities and supports for full economic and social<br />
participation in the community. We provide access to<br />
training and employment supports and encourage the<br />
strengthening of social networks through building family<br />
cohesiveness, peer bonding and neighbourhood connectivity.
Fundraising<br />
When you donate to The Learning<br />
Enrichment Foundation, you become part<br />
of an organization that is responsible to the<br />
community it serves. You also become a part<br />
of a network of friends helping to improve<br />
the quality of life in the Weston–Mount<br />
Dennis area.<br />
As a donor, you share in the successes of our<br />
participants and feel the pride we feel every<br />
time someone makes a change for the better<br />
in their lives.<br />
Person by person, our community becomes<br />
stronger and healthier.<br />
You contribute to that achievement by<br />
becoming a donor.<br />
LEF is grateful to our donors and sponsors<br />
who see the promise and the vision that<br />
began with our founders in 1978.<br />
Our sincere thanks to all those who have<br />
generously supported The Learning<br />
Enrichment Foundation this year:<br />
1. Priscilla Abolor<br />
2. Grace Addai<br />
3. Adefila Emmanuel<br />
Adewale<br />
4. Margarida Almeida<br />
5. Cathy Aspeliender<br />
6. Garry Bakiuniec<br />
7. Darri Beaulieu<br />
8. Joan Birkett<br />
9. John Blair<br />
10. Colleen Boer<br />
11. Ed Boer<br />
12. Antonella Bosco<br />
13. Fergy Brown<br />
14. Bob Churchill<br />
15. Sam Cole<br />
16. Brima Conteh<br />
17. Willa J. Corse<br />
18. Christopher Cowperthwait<br />
19. Lisa Cresswell-Fung<br />
20. Nancy Cunningham<br />
21. Louise Dikschei<br />
22. Brenda Dixon<br />
23. Abbe Edelson<br />
24. Peter Frampton<br />
25. Neserita P. Gascon<br />
26. Jackie George<br />
27. Olesya Gleba<br />
28. Larry Gutstein<br />
29. Robert Heath<br />
30. Denise Ince<br />
31. Osman Ismail<br />
32. Maggie Knap<br />
33. Comfort Kyei-Boateng<br />
34. Ed Lamoureux<br />
35. Elizabeth Lanfermann<br />
36. D. Lang<br />
37. Eileen Longson<br />
38. Kathleen Macdonald<br />
39. Rev. Louise Mahood<br />
40. Rankin McSween<br />
41. Peter Marinelli<br />
42. Helen Marzsalkowski<br />
43. Elizabeth McBain<br />
44. Mr Dairy &Food<br />
Distribution Ltd<br />
45. Grace Nalbandian<br />
46. Donna Nichol<br />
47. Nusso Textiles Ltd<br />
48. Amy O’Neil<br />
49. Lax O’Sullivan Scott LLP<br />
50. Louise Kool & Galt<br />
51. Yanneth Paz<br />
52. Adele Peden<br />
53. Pam Richardson<br />
54. Velma Russell<br />
55. Gaile Saltmiras<br />
56. Sylvia Smith<br />
57. Supreme Learning<br />
58. Jennifer Venart-Sym<br />
59. John Voorpostal<br />
60. Jane Waihenya<br />
61. Sam Waskies<br />
62. Mike Wilder<br />
63. John Wilkinson<br />
Sponsors, Donors and Funders<br />
1. 24/7 Real Media Inc.<br />
2. AIRMILES/Airmilesshops.ca<br />
3. Alterna Savings<br />
4. Anonymous<br />
5. AOL Advertising<br />
6. Brady Financial Group<br />
7. BV Media<br />
8. Caplan’s Appliances<br />
9. Casale Media<br />
10. Diego Casco/Casco Design<br />
Communications Inc.<br />
11. Chapman’s Ice Cream<br />
12. Citizenship and Immigration Canada/<br />
Citoyenneté et Immigration Canada<br />
13. City of <strong>Toronto</strong><br />
14. Club Link<br />
15. Robert Conway<br />
16. CTV Digital Media<br />
17. Electrolux Canada<br />
18. Employment Ontario<br />
19. Ernst & Young<br />
20. Gorilla Nation Canada<br />
21. Greenshield Canada<br />
22. Human Resources and Skills<br />
Development Canada/Ressources<br />
Humaines et Développement des<br />
competences Canada<br />
23. Industry Canada/Industrie Canada<br />
24. Kevin Murdoch/Investors Group<br />
25. Irving Tissue<br />
26. Louise, Kool and Galt<br />
27. McGraw Hill Ryerson<br />
28. Metcalf Foundation<br />
29. Microsoft Advertising<br />
30. Mr. Dairy and Food Distributing Ltd.<br />
31. Nunu Educational Products Inc.<br />
32. Olive Canada Network<br />
33. Ontario Government<br />
34. Ontario Ministry of Training,<br />
Colleges and Universities<br />
35. Outdoor Gear Canada (OGC)<br />
36. Palmer Group<br />
37. PricewaterhouseCoopers<br />
38. ProMobility Wireless Inc.<br />
39. Redux Media Inc.<br />
40. Royale Tissue<br />
41. Scotia Bank, Weston/Mount Dennis<br />
42. Shum Vourkoutiotis Fund TCF<br />
43. Sinclair Cockburn Financial Group<br />
44. Social and Enterprise Development<br />
Innovations (SEDI)<br />
45. Standard Life Canada<br />
46. Steam Whistle Brewing<br />
47. Sunlife Financial, Richmond Hill, ON<br />
48. Supreme Learning<br />
49. Sympatico.msn.ca<br />
50. Tatengelo’s Wholesale Fruit<br />
51. Tex-Euro Industrial Sales<br />
52. Tim Hortons<br />
53. The Globe and Mail<br />
54. The <strong>Toronto</strong> Star<br />
55. The Weather Network<br />
56. <strong>Toronto</strong> <strong>Community</strong> Foundation<br />
57. <strong>Toronto</strong> <strong>Community</strong> News<br />
58. Tremor Media<br />
59. Video Egg<br />
60. John Voorpostel, Accountants<br />
61. Wilder and Associates Internet<br />
Services<br />
62. Yahoo! Canada<br />
63. York Lions Club<br />
Strategic Partners<br />
1. Akler, Browning, Frimet and<br />
Landzberg<br />
2. A-Way Express Courier Service<br />
3. Association of Early Childhood<br />
Educators<br />
4. Bicycle Trade Association of Canada<br />
5. Boyle Commercial Real Estate<br />
6. Brady Financial Group<br />
7. Canadian <strong>Community</strong> Economic<br />
Development Network (CCEDNet)<br />
8. Canadian Mothercraft<br />
9. CCEDNet Ontario<br />
10. CCLCS (LINC Childminding)<br />
11. <strong>Centre</strong> for Social Innovation<br />
12. Change <strong>Toronto</strong><br />
13. Childminding Monitoring Advisory<br />
Support<br />
14. Citizens-Police Liaison Committee<br />
12 Division<br />
15. College of Early Childhood Educators<br />
16. <strong>Community</strong> Consultative Committee<br />
17. <strong>Community</strong> Employment Action<br />
Team<br />
18. <strong>Community</strong> Social Planning Council<br />
of <strong>Toronto</strong><br />
19. Construction Safety Association<br />
20. Corrections Canada<br />
21. DOPE Girls and Boys<br />
22. Downtown East <strong>Community</strong><br />
Development Collective<br />
23. Ernst and Young<br />
24. Etobicoke Brighter Futures<br />
25. Evergreen<br />
26. Every Child Belongs<br />
27. For Youth Initiative<br />
28. Fred Victor <strong>Centre</strong><br />
29. George Harvey Collegiate Institute<br />
30. Hanen Language<br />
31. Haween Enterprises<br />
32. Hincks Dellcrest<br />
33. IdX <strong>Toronto</strong> Corporation<br />
34. Irving Tissue<br />
35. Information Technology Association<br />
of Canada<br />
36. Jane Alliance Neighbourhood<br />
Services<br />
37. Katz’s Deli<br />
38. Macaulay Child Development <strong>Centre</strong><br />
39. Metcalf Foundation<br />
40. Metroland<br />
41. Microskills<br />
42. Ministry of Children and Youth<br />
Services Ministry of <strong>Community</strong><br />
Services<br />
43. Ministry of Training, Colleges and<br />
Universities<br />
44. Miziwe Biik<br />
45. Middle Years <strong>Community</strong> Group<br />
46. Mount Dennis <strong>Community</strong><br />
Association<br />
47. Mount Dennis United Church<br />
48. Mount Dennis/Weston Network<br />
49. Quality Early Learning Network<br />
50. North York Chamber of Commerce<br />
51. Nunu Educational Products<br />
52. One Step<br />
53. Ontario Coalition for Better Childcare<br />
54. Ontario Coalition of Agencies<br />
Serving Immigrants<br />
55. Operation Springboard<br />
56. Parkdale Activity–Recreation <strong>Centre</strong><br />
57. Reboot Canada<br />
58. Rites of Passage<br />
59. Second Harvest<br />
60. Social and Enterprise Development<br />
Innovations<br />
61. Social Purpose Enterprise Network -<br />
<strong>Toronto</strong><br />
62. Somali Immigrant Women’s<br />
Association<br />
63. Squibb’s Stationers<br />
64. St. John Ambulance<br />
65. Supreme Learning<br />
66. TechSoup.ca<br />
67. Telecommunications Canada<br />
68. <strong>Toronto</strong> Bail Program<br />
69. <strong>Toronto</strong> Board of Trade<br />
70. <strong>Toronto</strong> Catholic District School<br />
Board<br />
71. <strong>Toronto</strong> <strong>Centre</strong> Employment Services<br />
Network<br />
72. <strong>Toronto</strong> Children’s Aid<br />
73. <strong>Toronto</strong> Children Services<br />
74. <strong>Toronto</strong> Coalition for Better<br />
Childcare<br />
75. <strong>Toronto</strong> <strong>Community</strong> Housing<br />
Corporation<br />
76. <strong>Toronto</strong> <strong>Community</strong> Foundation<br />
77. <strong>Toronto</strong> <strong>Community</strong> News<br />
78. <strong>Toronto</strong> District School Board<br />
79. <strong>Toronto</strong> Economic Development<br />
80. <strong>Toronto</strong> Enterprise Fund – United<br />
Way<br />
81. <strong>Toronto</strong> Parks and Recreation<br />
82. Trethewey Club<br />
83. University of <strong>Toronto</strong><br />
84. WeirFoulds LLP<br />
85. West Coalition on Housing and<br />
Homelessness<br />
86. Wilcox Early Learning <strong>Centre</strong><br />
87. Wilder and Associates Internet<br />
Services<br />
88. Windfall Clothing Services<br />
89. YMCA Fit for Life<br />
90. York University<br />
91. York West Seniors<br />
92. Yorktown Child and Family <strong>Centre</strong><br />
93. Youth Challenge Fund – United Way<br />
94. YMCA Assessment <strong>Centre</strong>s<br />
95. YWCA – Beatrice House, LEAP
116 Industry Street<br />
<strong>Toronto</strong>, Ontario M6M 4L8<br />
Phone: 416.769.0830<br />
Fax: 416.769.9912<br />
www.lefca.org