A new bench was placed outside of Cathedral Close on June 29, 2017, and while this isn’t normally something to pay special attention to, this bench represents something more than simply somewhere to stop for a quick rest. As part of the City of Edmonton’s Hello, How Are You? campaign to address urban isolation and … Continue reading Buddy Benches
In April of 2016, GEF Seniors Housing hosted a community meeting with members of Elmwood and the surrounding neighbourhoods. The meeting was to discuss a new proposal for a seniors housing building on the vacant lot behind the Meadowlark Place lodge. GEF Seniors Housing’s Director of Facility Management Doug Kitlar explains that this initial meeting … Continue reading Elmwood Terrace: Where are we now?
Sakaw Terrace as an idea was first conceived by Raymond Swonek when the City of Edmonton offered GEF Seniors Housing a surplus school site in the Mill Woods area. After seeing the plot of land being offered for a new affordable seniors housing development, he immediately pictured a building unlike anything GEF had ever attempted … Continue reading Sakaw Terrace
Now accepting applications for Canora Gardens' reopening January 2018. On the afternoon of July 31, 2012, GEF Seniors Housing faced one of its worst building fires in over 50 years it has been an organization. The Canora Gardens building’s second floor caught fire after a new tenant moving in put a cardboard box on a … Continue reading Canora Gardens
For more than 10 years, GEF Seniors Housing has partnered with the Terra Centre, a not-for-profit association dedicated to providing supports to teen parents while they finish their education and plan for the future. The children who attend the Terra Centre’s Child and Family Support Centre program visit Ottewell Place for intergenerational programming that benefits … Continue reading At the Lodge with Skyler
GEF Seniors Housing holds an annual raffle over the summer months with an early bird prize of $500 and a grand prize of $1,500. The Building for Life Raffle is a staple in GEF Seniors Housing’s fundraising efforts and continues to be one of the most exciting endeavours over the summer for the residents and … Continue reading The Building for Life Raffle
Every year, members of knitting clubs based in GEF Seniors Housing buildings donate thousands of pieces of winter outdoor wear to local charities at an event that’s become known as the Great Knitting Giveaway. All the yarn used was donated to the knitting clubs throughout the year at the more than 40 buildings that GEF … Continue reading The Great Knitting Giveaway
For the past nine years, GEF Seniors Housing hosts a breakfast fundraiser to help support new capital building projects in Edmonton. Though the Building for Life Breakfast Fundraiser is held annually and has been hosted by CTV’s Daryl McIntyre, every event has a different flavour that’s kept GEF Seniors Housing’s business partners and community connections … Continue reading The 2017 Building for Life Breakfast Fundraiser
“I turned the key/Opened the door/One bedroom suite/Second floor/Grace Garden Court.” Deepa Garbaria wrote this opening line to a poem when she moved into her new home at Grace Garden Court. The poem titled “Anxiety” outlines her struggles adjusting to both moving to Edmonton from Montreal and to moving into her new apartment. “I didn’t … Continue reading GEF’s Poet Laureate Deepa Garbaria
This is a story that was originally published in the February 2017 edition of Edmonton Prime Times. Shanika Donalds knows better than most the harsh impacts that social isolation can have on seniors. Her role with GEF Seniors Housing as Community Supports Manager was created to help address the issue of social isolation in the seniors living … Continue reading PEGASIS Rides to the Rescue of Isolated Seniors
Community Connections Blog 