For 30 years, Aunt Leah’s Place has helped prevent children in foster care from becoming homeless, and mothers in need from losing custody of their children throughout Metro Vancouver.

 

To support them on their journey, we provide support in three key areas: Housing; Life Skills, Food Security & Health; and Education & Employment.

Aunt Leah’s works proactively at the ‘entry’ and ‘exit’ points of the foster care system.

First, we help mothers in need maintain custody of their children, therefore helping to reduce the number of children and youth coming into the permanent care of the child welfare system and keeping families together.

 

Anchor programs that support this work are:
  • AUNT LEAH’S HOUSE provides safe, supported housing for pregnant and parenting teen moms currently in government care. Aunt Leah’s House helps give new families a healthy foundation by ensuring each mother and child is connected with a family doctor, natal health, counseling, dentist, an optometrist, and mental health & counselling.
  • THRESHOLDS SUPPORTIVE HOUSING PROGRAM operates two houses for mothers and their children, effectively keeping families together and preventing another generation from entering the foster care system. Thresholds works in cooperation with the local child protection agency in order to create long-term solutions that help low-income families fulfill their obligations to maintain or re-attain child custody.
  • Second, we work with foster youth readying to ‘age out’, giving supports similar to what modern parents give their own children transitioning to adulthood.

    Aunt Leah’s pursues a definition of success ‘to create an environment where all children connected to the foster care system have equal opportunities akin to what parented children receive’.

     

    Aunt Leah’s follows a simple approach.

    By modeling average Canadian families, and surrounding youth with holistic supports – including housing, counselling, life skill development, education and employment opportunities – we have seen young people from foster care realize their potential and become independent adults connected to the community.

    For a second time, Aunt Leah’s Place has been selected as a Top 10 Impact Charity by Charity Intelligence.