Charitable Fund Spotlight: Stirling Avenue Mennonite Church

The need for affordable housing solutions has never been greater. However, the diversity of housing options also needs consideration. Stirling Avenue Mennonite Church in Kitchener has thoughtfully discerned how they might meet the housing needs of a variety of community members and have come up with some creative and thoughtful solutions.

The members of Stirling consider themselves fortunate to own five houses around the church. These homes have been used to provide affordable housing to many people over the years. Often, these homes have been used as medium-term housing for refugee families arriving in Kitchener. For several years, two of the homes were used as “dry houses”, specifically intended for people leaving addiction treatment and in need of housing.

Stirling has expanded its discernment of how best to steward these houses, particularly with a focus on honouring the original inhabitants of the land.

“We now refer to this process as the stewardship of (our) land, using the brackets to show that we play a stewardship role for the original inhabitants as well as future generations,” explains Laura Enns, Mission, Peace, and Justice Coordinator at Stirling.

For the past year, in partnership with Crow Shield Lodge, Stirling has allocated a specific house to provide housing to elders and knowledge keepers who are in the area to support the work of Crow Shield Lodge. Crow Shield Lodge is an Indigenous organization focused on land-based healing.

“The house has become something of an Indigenous healing hub,” comments Laura. In addition to providing housing, there is a rehearsal space for a young drumming group, as well as cedar baths and other forms of Indigenous medicine. A knowledge keeper with much-sought-after skills in drum making recently stayed at the house.

This sort of thoughtful action, what Laura refers to as land justice, is part of a larger land discernment process happening at Stirling. For example, the church has started to make symbolic lease payments to Six Nations Polytechnic, that amount to 1% of their annual budget. As the church continues to grow post-COVID, they will continue to seek out new ways to support local Indigenous organizations.

Kindred Credit Union is pleased to have supported this important project, that has helped to bring healing to our Indigenous neighbours, and reconciliation to our communities.