About The Imagine Initiative – Carmichael Outreach

Why we are so excited for our new building!

We imagine a version of our community where everyone has a safe place to lay their heads at night.

We imagine a version of our community where parents don’t have to go without, so that their children can eat.

We imagine a version of our community where those struggling with addiction can get the help they need.

Community is the backbone of Carmichael Outreach. We work to meet the needs of our community’s most high-needs individuals, and we want to work hand-inhand with the community to ensure that these needs are being met. We imagine a future where community members from all walks of life can work together in helping us to achieve our vision of the end of poverty and homelessness in Regina.

Exciting New Programs We Will Offer!

Space for Healing

Carmichael recognizes the importance of holistic healing for our community. We have offered healing circles in the past, which incorporate traditional Aboriginal spirituality, and would see a regular attendance of 20+ members of the community. In our new building, we hope to include a healing room, so that we can have a space entirely dedicated to our community’s journey to holistic healing.

Financial Literacy Program

We are excited to be partnering with Conexus Credit Union to provide financial literacy training to our vulnerable populations. The Conexus Carmichael Financial Literacy Program will allow us to expand opportunities through financial education. Stay tuned in the new year for more details!

Nutrition Program

In the past, we have offered a food nutrition and meal prep course, in an effort to support long-term solutions for our community members. The Imagine Initiative will provide us with the space and resources to continue offering this program in the future as well as a program on preparing healthy meals on a budget.

We will also be able to offer educational opportunities related to food preparation and safety.

We Are Also Excited For …

Inclusivity

We work with a wide range of people, and we want to ensure that everyone feels welcome at Carmichael Outreach. Our old building was not wheelchair accessible. We were able to work around this by bringing people in through our back door, but this was of course not the ideal way to welcome people into our space. Our new building will be entirely wheelchair accessible, ensuring that anyone who wants to come to Carmichael can do so with dignity and freedom.

New Kitchen

Our old building provided several obstacles to offering hot meals and nutrition programs. The kitchen space was limited, making it difficult for staff and volunteers to operate safely and efficiently. We were also unable to serve meals indoors, requiring us to serve food through the back door of our building, to a lineup in our parking lot. The new building will include a fully operational commercial kitchen, ensuring a safe and efficient environment for staff and volunteers. We will be able to serve meals indoors, as well as offer space indoors for our community members to enjoy their meals.

Free Clothing and Household Boutique

Every Monday–Friday, we accept donations of seasonal clothing, toys, games, books, housewares, and small household goods. In an average week, we receive and distribute around 100 donations of used goods. In our new building we will have even more space to take and distribute even more donations, as well as offer some fresh produce and other grocery items.

Long-Term Sustainability

We envision a future where Carmichael Outreach can be more self-reliant in regards to funding. We are exploring a variety of social enterprise options that may involve food and beverages, moving services, and arts and culture. Being less reliant on outside funding in the future can help us to better respond to the needs of our community.

Harm Reduction and Health Focus

Population and Public Health

When our permanent building is ready, we will have a clinic office on site specifically for public health nurses, in conjunction with the Regina Qu’Appelle Health Region. The nurses will be able to use this space to offer on-site testing and primary care.

Needle Exchange Program

Once we move into our new permanent building, we will be able to reintroduce our needle exchange program.

Operated by The Street Project team from the Regina Qu’Appelle Health Region, this service operates on the principles of harm reduction, prevents the spread of disease, and offers individuals battling addiction a friendly face and resource to sobriety. We have a 99.97% retention rate.