COVENANT HOUSE ANNUAL REPORT 2005 T 2005 AL REPOR ANNU Our Principles Table of Contents IMMEDIACY ANT HOUSE Kids come to us in crisis, desperately needing help.We provide VEN Message from the Executive Director . 3 for their basic human needs – food, clothing, a shower and O C medical attention – immediately. Message from the Chair . 4 Message from the President . 5 SANCTUARY Achievements 2004-2005 . 6 Kids trying to get off the street are often scared and mistrustful. We protect our kids from violence and degradation by providing Our Programs and Services . 7 safety. How Dollars Are Raised . 12 VALUE COMMUNICATION Special Events . 13 We show our youth, by example, that wholesome, caring Donor Recognition . 14 relationships are based on trust, respect and honesty. Financial Report . 19 STRUCTURE Board of Directors . 25 Street life is unstable and unpredictable.We provide structure How to Contact Us . 25 and a reasonable set of expectations to give our kids a chance to focus on their future. CHOICE We help our youth make positive choices.We give them the encouragement they need to believe in themselves and to change. 1 T 2005 AL REPOR ANNU Our New vision Statement ANT HOUSE VEN O C Covenant House Toronto is a leading expert in and advocate for homeless youth in Canada.We serve the largest homeless youth population and provide the most complete range of housing and support services through our facilities, or in collaboration with community partners, to meet the needs of street youth. We are flexible and responsive to emerging needs of homeless youth. Our actions are supported by information and research and our operations are second to none. Our vision and our management philosophy are guided by our Covenant House Principles. 2 T 2005 AL REPOR Message from the Executive Director ANNU Giving young people every opportunity Most importantly we were able to gather possible to turn their lives around is at the better information about the needs of our core of our mission at Covenant House. youth.We identified new trends, in particular ANT HOUSE the increasing prevalence of mental health That is why I’m particularly proud to report issues and a need to reach at-risk youth.We VEN on the exciting work we’ve undertaken this O will address these issues in the coming year C past year that will enable us to offer better while we continue to keep abreast of the services to more youth. We’ve developed a emerging needs of our youth. new vision supported by a three-year strategic plan that will allow us to improve services to On behalf of the youth at Covenant House, our youth, respond more quickly to their I want to express my thanks to everyone emerging needs, strengthen our advocacy who gave so much over the past year. It is efforts and ensure our financial stability. As only with your help that we can offer our kids part of this effort, we surveyed our youth, staff a second chance. and other community agencies for their input. Sincerely, In addition, we conducted a complete operational review and implemented a continuous improve- ment model to ensure that our program and administration operate as effectively and efficiently as possible. Ruth daCosta Already we are seeing positive results.We have Executive Director realized administrative savings and increased time youth workers can spend with residents by streamlining paperwork requirements. 3 T 2005 AL REPOR Message from the Chair ANNU It is with mixed emotions that I find myself On behalf of the Board, I also want to express about to wrap up my term as Chair of my sincerest thanks to the many people who Covenant House Toronto’s Board of Directors. give so generously to help the kids at Covenant ANT HOUSE While I’m sad to be moving on, I’m so proud of House.The contributions of individuals like Dan VEN our achievements over the past year. O’Neill, companies like CIBC and our partners O including the Archdiocese of Toronto and C For me it is all about the kids. Like all kids, Covenant House, International enable us to they have so much potential and energy.The give our kids the chance they need. difference is that most of them have faced circumstances we’d find hard to imagine. I don’t expect to ever be far from Covenant House and the young people here. I urge you I’m particularly gratified to see that Covenant to join us as we continue to “fight the good House is in a stronger position for the future fight” for street kids who are in such urgent as a result of the work done this past year need of our assistance. on a new strategic plan and the implementation of a continuous improvement model in its Sincerely, operations. My thanks to all of our Board Members for their support, to Executive Director Ruth daCosta for her guidance and her staff for Paul Alofs their help during my term. I’m confident they Board Chair will continue to do a great job and I wish my successor,Tom Woods, all the best. 4 T 2005 AL REPOR Message from the President ANNU Whether in Toronto, Philadelphia or effective operation. I am also encouraged Guatemala, the 76,000 youth in our care to see that they will make reaching more last year came to us with more complex at-risk youth a goal for the coming year. ANT HOUSE needs and facing even tougher barriers as At our corporate headquarters in New they struggle to rebuild their lives. VEN York, we have also begun a review of our O C Dangerous trends like the globalization of programs, services and operations this past drug and prostitution rings are putting year and we will be going forward with more children at terrible risk across North this initiative in the coming year. I expect and Latin America and around the world. we will find the work done in Toronto a At home, domestic violence and family benefit to us as we proceed. breakdown continue to take an increasingly I want to thank everyone involved at painful toll on our young people. Covenant House Toronto, and all of our Our theme this year is,“Covenant House: generous donors. It is only with your help Shaping the Agenda for At-Risk Youth in the that we can continue in our mission to Americas”.As we seek ways to address this help street youth, particularly those who challenge, I look forward to being among have nowhere else to turn. national childcare leaders when we meet God be with you. with First Lady Laura Bush, who has made the welfare of children her priority. I commend Covenant House Toronto for its achievements this past year in planning and Sister Patricia Cruise implementing changes to ensure the best President, Covenant House possible services to our youth and an 5 T 2005 AL REPOR 2004 - 2005 Achievements ANNU • Some 4,000 youth, most aged from 16 to 19, • Spent over $12 million, about 77% of our total • Participated in an effort by the Ontario received services, including safe refuge, food, expenditures, on programs for our youth. Association of Children’s Aid Societies to find clothing, counselling, medical attention and ways to improve educational outcomes for ANT HOUSE • Introduced a continuous improvement model to educational and vocational assistance. vulnerable youth, including increasing access to ensure our program and administration are as financial support for post-secondary education. VEN • 863 youth used our health care clinic for a total of efficient and effective as possible. As a result, O C 8,575 visits. About 35 percent were non-residents as realized administrative savings and increased • Collaborated with the Downtown Yonge Business many continue to use our clinic after they move on. time youth workers can spend with residents Improvement Area to help reduce the impact of by streamlining paperwork requirements. homelessness through activities like encouraging • Up to 28 youth lived in our longer-term housing businesses to hire and mentor homeless youth. facility and received the support of all of our • Helped secure a site and capital funding for programs while they worked and/or continued 25 housing units for homeless teen parents as • Delivered a poster presentation at the first their education. 19 youth graduated from this part of an effort by community agencies. national conference on homelessness that program last year and eight others were reunited brought together academics, homeless people • Involved 30 residents in a downtown garbage with their families. and frontline agencies to help find solutions. clean-up project and provided a youth speaker for • 162 attended our in-house high school that is the media launch of Shelter Awareness Week in • Delivered a presentation to the Youth Court open to residents and non-residential youth. Toronto at City Hall to demonstrate their abilities Advisory Committee to raise awareness of and help dispel negative perceptions of street youth. the problems of homeless youth so that those • 19,163 students in schools and youth groups were in the judicial system can better understand given presentations about the dangers of street • Collaborated with other community agencies and their issues. life and safer alternatives to running to the street. provided youth participants for research projects including a study of the problems of high school • Developed a new vision statement supported by a dropouts for the Ontario government, a national three-year strategic plan focused on better services investigation into strategies used by youth to exit to more youth. As part of this planning process, the streets and a study of the mental health needs we surveyed our youth, staff and other community of street youth.