midweek edition WEDNESDAY, NOV. 17, 2010
Vol. 101 No. 92 • Established 1908 • East
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Craft fair confidential Hockey is for girls
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Cash crunch threatens aboriginal centre Facility provides refuge for downtown homeless Mike Howell Staff writer
A nonprofit drop-in centre in the Downtown Eastside whose clients include a large number of homeless aboriginal people will close for at least three months in the winter unless it can come up with money to keep its doors open. The Aboriginal Front Door Society at 384 Main St. is operating under a $40,000 city grant that expires at the end of the year, putting the once financially comfortable centre in financial straits. Mona Woodward, executive director of the society, said she anticipates the or-
ganization will receive another grant from the city in April 2011 but has to make up a $25,000 shortfall to remain open for January, February and March 2011. “Those months are crucial for a lot of the homeless people who rely on us to be open,” said Woodward, who became executive director of the society last month. “This is a safe place and provides refuge from the street for a lot of people. I’m a fighter and I want to fight to keep this organization open.” The drop-in centre is located in the heart of the Downtown Eastside, a few steps from Main and Hastings. It’s open Monday to
Friday. Statistics for September show 546 people visited the society’s office that month. Some drop in for coffee and food while others seek referrals to addictions services, housing and medical help. Programs include crisis intervention, computer training and healing circles. The society also works with the Downtown Community Court, which refers some of its clients to the drop-in centre to complete community work as part of a sentence. The centre opened in 2003 under the Vancouver Agreement initiative. See DIRECTOR on page 4
Garibaldi annex granted reprieve East Side school considered for closure in 2007 Naoibh O’Connor Staff writer
Mona Woodward is executive director of the Aboriginal Front Door Society in the Downtown Eastside. photo Dan Toulgoet
Garibaldi annex is safe for at least one more school year after trustees agreed it met growth targets required to keep its doors open. The East Side school at 1025 Slocan St. was threatened with closure in 2007 after struggling with low enrolment. The community around the school objected, prompting the board to give it three years to boost enrolment—it needed to attract at least 36 more new students to the district by this past September or it would be closed by June 2011. The deal pro-
tected the school from the closure process five other East Side schools are now undergoing. Garibaldi was considered a separate case and its immediate future was decided at Monday night’s board meeting. Parent Advisory Council chairman Halford Milne was thrilled to hear the news. “This has been a great success story and the school is open for new student registration,” he said Monday. Garibaldi houses a kindergarten to Grade 4 program, a homelearners program and the Vancouver Learning Network elementary program. See SCHOOL on page 4
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