Programs

Seven practical programs — what we run ourselves, and what we champion alongside our partners.

A note on figures: every dollar figure on this page is a planning estimate, prepared for planning purposes. Our estimated Year 1 program budget is $167,000.

P1 — Street Outreach & Housing Navigation Teams

Estimated annual cost: $25,000

What it does: Weekly street outreach to encampments, shelters, and known outdoor locations — not to “check on” people, but to build the trust that makes housing possible.
Who it serves: Unsheltered people, encampment residents, shelter users, and people couch-surfing — prioritizing chronic homelessness and high vulnerability.
Staffing: 1 part-time Housing Navigator (20 hrs/week) + 6 trained outreach volunteers on rotating teams of 3, supervised by the CEO/Founder.

P2 — Keep Home Fund (Eviction-Prevention Micro-Fund)

Estimated annual cost: $15,000

What it does: Fast, small grants — rent or utility arrears, damage deposits, first/last month’s rent, moving costs — for households at imminent risk of losing housing. Decisions within 48 hours. Works alongside the DSSMSSAB Housing Stability Bank, catching people who fall through formal intake, after hours, or through trust barriers.
Who it serves: Low-income renters facing eviction notices, arrears, or unsafe housing they must leave; families and youth prioritized.
Staffing: Volunteer intake team (2 trained volunteers) + CEO approval for disbursements; simple ledger, receipts, and quarterly review.

P3 — Landlord Engagement & Partnership Program

Estimated annual cost: $5,000

What it does: Recruits private landlords willing to rent to people exiting homelessness — offering a single point of contact, a small damage-mitigation guarantee, mediation when tenancies wobble, and tenants with a navigator in their corner.
Who it serves: Landlords (who get reliability) and tenants exiting homelessness (who get a door opened).
Staffing: Volunteer Landlord Liaison + navigator support; quarterly landlord appreciation and feedback roundtables.

P4 — Transitional Housing Pilot (Master-Lease Units)

Estimated annual cost: $82,600

What it does: The Kindness Project master-leases private-market units (Year 1: 4 units) and sublets them to people exiting homelessness with wraparound navigator support and a planned move to permanent housing within 6–12 months. A bridge — not a destination.
Who it serves: People ready to leave shelter or encampment life who need a stable address and support to sustain it; coordinated with the HART Hub and shelter discharge planning.
Staffing: Navigator caseload support + volunteer tenant mentors; partnership with a property partner for maintenance.

P5 — Harm-Reduction Housing Supports

Estimated annual cost: $8,000

What it does: Harm-reduction supplies, naloxone training, safer-use education, and overdose-response planning delivered in housing contexts — for tenants in transitional units, people newly housed, and encampment residents. Delivered in coordination with the HART Hub, CMHA Algoma, and the Community Wellness Bus.
Who it serves: People who use substances and are housed, newly housed, or unsheltered.
Staffing: 4 trained volunteers with harm-reduction certification; peer workers with lived experience paid honoraria where funding allows.

P6 — Youth Housing Stream

Estimated annual cost: $6,000

What it does: Dedicated navigation for youth (16–24) at risk of or experiencing homelessness — family mediation where safe, rapid connection to Lotus House’s youth shelter beds and Bridge Units, education and employment links, and aftercare check-ins for the first year after housing.
Who it serves: Youth 16–24, including youth aging out of care.
Staffing: 1 part-time youth navigator (shared with P1 in Year 1; dedicated role by Year 3) + 3 trained youth volunteers.

P7 — Indigenous-Led Partnership Stream

Estimated annual cost: $10,000

What it does: Funding and volunteer support that flows to Indigenous-led housing work rather than duplicating it — supporting the Indigenous Friendship Centre’s Reaching Home Indigenous stream, Niigaaniin, and Ontario Aboriginal Housing Services with outreach volunteers, cultural-event support, and joint advocacy. Program design for Indigenous participants is led by Indigenous partners.
Who it serves: Indigenous people experiencing homelessness, as determined with Indigenous partners.
Staffing: Indigenous advisory circle (elders, partners, lived experience) + dedicated volunteer team.

Working With Partners, Not Alone

Ending homelessness is a team effort. We seek to complement — never duplicate or compete with — existing services. We work alongside the District of Sault Ste. Marie Social Services Administration Board (DSSMSSAB), the City of Sault Ste. Marie, the Indigenous Friendship Centre, CMHA Algoma and the HART Hub, Lotus House, Women in Crisis Algoma, Ontario Aboriginal Housing Services, Niigaaniin, the John Howard Society, St. Vincent Place, Sault Area Hospital, 211 Ontario, and the Canadian Alliance to End Homelessness.

Our targets: 20 people housed and 40 evictions prevented in Year 1; 150+ people housed and 300 evictions prevented by Year 5; 500 new affordable and supportive units championed city-wide by Year 5 — all estimated targets, and we report publicly on what we hit and what we miss.