Generosity Amidst Scarcity

It seems a paradox that people who live with very little are often the most generous. Before the COVID-driven scarcity mindset that seems to have beset the world was a thing, many folks in Parkdale (and any number of places around the city and the world) were living with little. In the midst of this…

Community Despite COVID

First of all, I want to say thank you for taking time to read this little update on life at The Dale during this pandemic. In the midst of such uncertain times, it means so much to have such a great team of supporters. We do not take you for granted! As I’m sure you…

Beloved Chris

Ten days ago, before COVID 19 was the first thing on everyone’s mind, the world lost a truly beautiful soul. So, in the midst of all the pandemic news, I’d like to take a pause and share my appreciation for the life of Chris Vanhartskamp. It’s hard to adequately describe Chris’ impact. He was such…

An Ode to Coffee Time

Parkdale’s Coffee Time is closing this week. While it may seem strange to have an emotional attachment to a B-list coffee franchise location… I do. It’s not just that Coffee Time’s closure smacks of gentrification (the pricing-out of affordable food/drink options, along with affordable housing options), which it does. Coffee Time was more than just…

Stories

Last week we held another memorial at The Dale. This one was for a woman named Mary Patterson, also known on the streets of Parkdale as “Irish Mary”. She had a large personality, and considered herself to be a sort of den mother to her crew of friends. She would never hesitate to let you…

And then there were FIVE!

I still can’t quite believe that The Dale staff team has grown to five people over the last couple of years! Meagan Knight, Pete Nojd, and now Olivia Dower have each decided to come aboard this quirky little ship; decisions that took courage and continue to require faith. It is no small thing to start…

“Joy and Love”

This week at The Dale’s worship service, a dear friend was struggling to keep their tears at bay. They know that we are not afraid of sadness here, but still felt the need to leave the service early, unable to cope with being out and about any longer. Such intense sadness is not unusual for…

Hooray!

The Dale community has had some really lovely moments recently. I want to share these, because in the midst of a hurting, mixed up world, we need to celebrate the good. A few weeks ago, two community members had a misunderstanding that quickly escalated. The details aren’t important, but let’s just say that it wasn’t…

A rare and beautiful house blessing

A few months ago, a dear Dale friend’s name finally came to the top of a waiting list for supportive, rent-geared-to-income housing. This was/is a huge deal, because these wait lists are incredibly long. Soon after moving in, our friend asked us to come and pray over her new home. So, of course, we did!…

Musical Chairs

At The Dale I sometimes find myself in a conversation with someone where I need to work pretty hard to track what is being communicated. I believe that these conversations are important, even if I fail to follow my friend’s train of thought, because we all need to simply be heard. Yesterday I was in…