This week, the YW team said a final good-bye with mixed emotions to YW’s old building downtown. For nearly 50 years, the building located on 5th Avenue supported women and families in Calgary, initially as a hostel then transitional housing. Nearly 7 years ago, YW recognized a need for a new space that better supported the needs of our community – from new comers to Canada talking language classes to women looking for safe housing, to families attending childcare. The sale of the building was official on November 17, 2015.
The sale of the building allowed YW to purchase land for a new home in Inglewood and with the support of donors and government, was able to create a sustainability plan to ensure vulnerable women and families continue to have uninterrupted access to the programs and services they need to thrive.
Team members roamed the empty halls of what used to the YW’s home this week and fondly reminisced on the great history and memories the build holds: