The residents of Eden’s supportive housing program are doing their part to support the mental health agency this holiday season.
Devin Williams (left) and Brandon Black with the Christmas ornaments they and other Linden Place residents made and are selling to raise funds for Eden Foundation
Linden Place’s five residents have spent time this fall creating Christmas ornaments through their Learning With Purpose program.
They’re selling them for $30 a set, with proceeds going to the Eden Foundation, Eden Health Care Services’ fundraising arm.
Supportive housing manager Eric Lai explains the Winkler facility provides round-the-clock care for people recovering from mental health challenges. It’s a transitional home environment in which residents can live for a few years before moving into more independent housing.
“We are the only residential care transitional home for people with mental health challenges in Manitoba south,” Lai said, noting the need for these and other supportive housing options continues to grow.
The Learning With Purpose program at Linden teaches residents life skills, like working with their hands and budgeting. They also focus on giving residents the opportunity to give back to the community, which is how these Christmas ornaments came about.
“My team and I, we help people to help themselves,” Lai said. “And we try to create some creative and sustainable projects.”
In September, residents made pins in honour of Orange Shirt Day, and they were a huge hit.
“It gave us more confidence to extend our Linden Place project, so before Christmas we decided to make these ornaments with [a note] with our residents’ signature and a thank-you letter inside.”
They told Eden Foundation marketing and events manager Tyson Deceuninck about the project, and he welcomed the opportunity to begin selling the ornaments at the foundation’s Light Up the Night celebration a few weeks ago.
“Historically the foundation has sold Christmas ornaments, but they’re normally ones that are just manufactured with the Eden Foundation logo on them,” he shared. These ornaments, handmade by people involved with Eden, certainly trump those, providing a much more personal touch.
“I’m genuinely so proud of our staff and residents at Linden Place for taking on this initiative,” Deceuninck said. “It has such a pure intent.”
The residents were pleased to be able to do something that supports the agency that has so supported them, Lai said.
“They can get more confident because they are not only the receiver—sometimes they can be a giver as well.”
The ornaments are clear with origami stars and tinsel inside. They’re available in red, green, blue, orange, yellow, and purple. Each set comes with four ornaments in a decorative tin and a thank-you note.
You can purchase yours at the Eden Winkler offices on Main St. (inside the ALG Professional Centre) until Dec. 23.
