Youth Hostel and drop in resource centre: Open 24/7 - 17 Centre Street, in St. Catharines ( View Map)
“A stitch in time saves nine” “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure”, we’ve all heard these idioms and their meaning is clear, it’s easier to fix something before its broken than to fix it afterwards. What’s not clear and often goes unappreciated is that knowing where the stitch goes, and knowing what can prevent the ailment. This often requires a greater understanding of the problem than treating the symptoms.
Over twenty years ago the RAFT began offering services to youth through its drop-in centre. A small group of concerned people decided that they would make a difference in the lives of a few young people. They determined that young people shouldn’t have to live outside either physically or emotionally.
The Homeless Hub has just published an E-book, Exploring Effective Systems Responses to Homelessness, which can be found and downloaded here http://homelesshub.ca/systemsresponses.
Every year, United Way invests in different priority areas that strengthen our community. In 2015, one of their priority areas was All That Kids Can Be. The initiative funds programs for children and youth age 21 and younger and is designed to encourage children and youth to reach their full potential.
Traditionally, access to supports and services is difficult in rural and lightly populated areas. Niagara’s layout often forced youth to relocate to receive the proper services. Through the RAFT’s Youth Reconnect program, our workers can bring services and supports to a youth in their home community anywhere in the Niagara region. More importantly, youth can remain with their peer support group of friends and family while attending the school they grew up in. Let us tell you a story...
Ontario is moving forward with it's Social Impact Bonds (SIBs). The RAFT was one of four organizations selected to run a pilot project based on their SIB idea.
Join us on Friday October 30th for the Youth Benefit Music Show hosted by Josh D’Cunha and Mahtay Café! Tickets are $10 at the door with a portion of the proceeds being donated to youth at the Raft.
The RAFT is one of only four organizations shortlisted from among 83 proposals to participate in piloting and business case validation for the first Social Impact Bond (SIB) in Ontario. If you’re curious about what a Social Impact Bond is you can ask Michael Lethby, Executive Director of RAFT.
L’agence RAFT profite du financement du Ministère des Services à l'enfance et à la jeunesse et reconnaît l'importance de faciliter l’access au services dans la langue francaise pour leurs members francophone à travers le region du Niagara.
Six years ago we started offering a youth homelessness prevention program called Youth Reconnect. This was a large undertaking for us as it represented a completely new strategic direction for our services and was being piloted in a largely rural community approximately 50 kilometers away
Attention RAFT Donors! Your charitable donation tax receipt is now ready to be downloaded.
There are many ways that you can help The Raft programs and services for youth.
