SUMMERSIDE, P.E.I. — After being open for less than a month, a new Summerside shelter is already making a difference for some of the province’s new mothers.
One of its five beds was occupied when SaltWire visited; two more women and their babies were preparing to arrive over the next few weeks.
For the last three years, executive director Tammy MacKinnon has worked hard to make Hope House more than a dream.
Related stories
The new transitional housing, located on First Street in Summerside, opened on April 1, and MacKinnon said she couldn’t be more excited.
“To have actual babies here that we’re holding, to have babies here and moms that are really thankful to have people around them, and to be surrounding them with care, it’s really, really awesome," she said.
The shelter is open to women from all across P.E.I., not just those from Summerside.
While there are other women’s shelters in the province – MacKinnon named LifeHouse, Chief Mary Bernard Memorial Shelter and Anderson House – MacKinnon notes those are mostly short-term placements.
“(Hope House) is meant to be long-term, so they can actually live here for 15 months,” she said. “It’s meant to be, specifically, to support them and educate them and train them, so that when they leave here, they’re equipped to live independently in a safe and healthy way.”
What is Hope House
Hope House is geared toward new mothers who could benefit from extra support and guidance.
“It could be, first of all, they don’t have healthy supports or relationships in their life.
"Some of our moms may be early into their addiction recovery and they’re just needing some extra support that way,” said MacKinnon. “Some may have been in relationships that were abusive or not healthy. Some moms are facing homelessness.”
The aim, said MacKinnon, is for mothers to stay with their babies, form healthy bonds and learn to become healthy parents.
Hope House accepts pregnant women and mothers with babies under a year old, but staff will look at each situation on a case-to-case basis.
“Most of the people that are being referred to us are being referred ... during their pregnancy,” said MacKinnon.
“The ideal would be, they could come during their third trimester of pregnancy, get settled in the home, learn the routine and what we’re gonna do. Then, when baby comes, they have a safe place to come back to.”
Hope House began as an Island Pregnancy Centre initiative. After it gains charity status, the two organizations will become separate entities.
-
Bookmark our website and support our journalism: Don’t miss the news you need to know — add saltwire.com to your bookmarks and sign up for our newsletters here.
Dream come true
Janine Hamilton, a support worker at Hope House, has worked as a foster parent. Being able to help new mothers had always been her dream; when the opportunity to work with Hope House arose, she leapt at the chance.
“I’m grateful that these moms get the teaching and the learning (so) that they can just grow, and there’s no concerns,” said Hamilton.
“I’m very excited to be able to help them before anybody questions them. That they know what they’re doing, everybody knows there’s just a very good support system if they need help, and there's training, there’s counselling.”
Mere weeks into the job, Hamilton said she is still “on cloud ten” and looking forward to welcoming more families to Hope House in the coming weeks.
Making a difference
Residency at Hope House costs 25 per cent of one’s income – or else covered by social assistance.
“Part of what we’re doing here is really giving them an experience of what it would be like to live in the real world, or when they’re on their own,” said MacKinnon. “Part of the life skills program that we do here is teaching them about budgeting their money.”
In addition to the shelter, the service is also open to those not staying in a bed. As of mid-April, the shelter had one mother and her baby spending the day at Hope House and returning home for the night.
“We’re trying to really support them in the sense that they need some help with their parenting education, they need some help and support just in not feeling alone all day long with the baby,” said MacKinnon. “They can come during the day, and they participate in all of the things that we’re doing here.”
MacKinnon also hopes to offer an outreach program and classes, available to anyone in the community.
Women can get referred to Hope House, or make contact themselves to self-refer.
“We’re really hoping, first of all, that anyone who walks through the door and lives here for whatever length of time they’re here, that they feel very loved and supported,” said MacKinnon.
“We want it to be a place (where) they feel connection, that they feel that someone knows their value and worth.”
Kristin Gardiner is a reporter with SaltWire in Prince Edward Island. She can be reached by email at kristin.gardiner@journalpioneer.com and followed on X @KristinGardiner.
