“What are the programs you support at Operation Come Home?”
“I have no idea.”
When Ken McLachlan says he has no idea what ReMax/Hallmark supports at OCH, it makes perfect sense. Ken, the owner of this region’s ReMax/Hallmark, doesn’t look at programs, he looks at organizations. Ken and his team of dedicated real estate agents don’t have a specific kind of cause they back – instead, they look for charities in the regions they serve that would do well with a significant boost, and they donate to those charities. Over the years, ReMax/Hallmark has provided funds for almost every facet of Operation Come Home’s work.
In 2017, ReMax/Hallmark was asked to direct their funds toward the drop-in, and they did. That year, more than 315 different youth made contact with OCH staff at the drop-in, and from there found their way into school, employment programs, and supports for mental health and addiction. Many found housing as well, and from there were able to access all the other supports they needed.
In 2018, the employees of ReMax/Hallmark in Ottawa got together for a unique and interesting fundraiser – they created gingerbread houses, then listed them online like the real estate they sell. It raised a lot of money, and that money went toward filling Christmas backpacks for our youth, provided food for the drop-in, and to a few other things as well. Some of those employees – including one of our favourite regular volunteers Sylvie Begin – began to volunteer around the building.
By 2019 we knew the upstairs, where our employment programs and the John Bosco Achievement Centre are located, had to be turned into a more welcoming and friendly space for the youth who access those services. When they heard about this, ReMax/Hallmark stepped up once again. Says Ken,
“I think we got you a new floor?”
Yes you did, Ken!
In 2020 everything changed. Not just for OCH, or for the homeless youth of Ottawa, but for everyone. ReMax/Hallmark was no exception.
“We had to close 29 offices in Ontario and lay off 150 staff who had families. It was the hardest thing we’ve ever had to do.”
Ken says they were very lucky, in that they had some money left in their foundation’s reserve. They knew that there would be those in their communities hurting even worse than they were, and so they redoubled their efforts and their financial support of groups like OCH.
In April, OCH started delivering food and supply hampers to the youth enrolled in the various programs in the building. They came with food supplied by the Ottawa Food Bank, COVID-19 resources for youth, as well as groceries and cleaning supplies purchased by ReMax/Hallmark.
Thankfully, as things have become better understood, those youth have been able to come back to the drop-in, with new protocols in place, to collect those items in person. They can also stay afterward, to attend school or work toward employment in an environment with a brand-new floor! And things are turning around for ReMax/Hallmark as well.
“We promised the employees we laid off that we’d bring them back, and we did. They’re now back to where they were last year, which is surprising but great. And we’re back to contributing money as needed, because we know not-for-profits are going to have some issues coming up in the next two-three months.”
Operation Come Home is not yet back to where we were in 2019. But we will be, and our youth will get there thanks to the support of community-minded companies that recognize the need in their neighbourhoods.