Queenston Street is considered a food desert, an area of a city that lacks access to plentiful, nutritious and affordable food at grocery stores, limiting people with accessibility issues or on fixed incomes.
Source: Posted in Niagara This Week St. Catharines on Oct. 25th 2024 by Kevin Werner. Laura Hiscoe has received a new bike after an outpouring of support from the community that had learned her old tricycle had been stolen.
Source: Posted in the St. Catharines Standard on Feb. 2nd, 2024. Start Me Up Niagara (SMUN) recently moved from its home of more than 14 years at 17 Gale Cres. due to accessibility issues. The move came a month after SMUN had originally planned to leave the old site but was stymied due to permitting issues to complete construction at 211 Church St.
Start Me Up Niagara (SMUN) is very excited to announce the amalgamation of Niagara’s Mobile Closet (NMC) and SMUN to help those most in need in our communities. SMUN and NMC have a long history of ensuring that those living in low income areas and those experiencing homelessness have access to clean, new clothes, hygiene products and other community services. This mobile program allows individuals easier access to clothing, allows individuals to grow and to participate.
Jan. 24, 2022 – With temperatures dropping, Start Me Up Niagara (SMUN), Silver Spire United Church and Niagara Region have worked jointly to open a warming centre to give those who are vulnerable and may be experiencing homelessness a safe, warm indoor place to rest and access amenities in St. Catharines. Silver Spire United Church located at 366 St. Paul Street in St. Catharines will be opening its doors for the warming centre on Monday, Jan. 24, 2022.
In 2020, Start Me Up Niagara received a $75,000 grant from the Ontario Trillium Foundation to deliver a project to conduct a feasibility study towards creating a comprehensive volunteer program. With a goal of building inclusive and engaged communities, this project will allow citizens to have a say in shaping services that matter to them and has an impact on the lives of 500 people in the community.
Start Me Up Niagara is pleased to hear of Susan Venditti receiving the T. Roy Adams Humanitarian award. Susan has been a guiding light in the city and region for those experiencing poverty, homelessness, mental health issues, and other significant life challenges. Susan has been a guiding light in the city and region for those experiencing poverty, homelessness, mental health issues, and other significant life challenges.
Start Me Up Niagara is proud to announce the opening of a new remote Resource Drop-In Centre in Niagara Falls. This additional Resource Centre will assist local Niagara Falls residents experiencing significant life challenges such as poverty, homelessness, unemployment, disabilities, addictions and mental illness by helping them to access the resources and programs that will provide them with opportunities to stabilize, participate and grow.
In contemplation of human disconnectedness, author Leo Buscaglia once wrote, “too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.” So let’s find small, honest, and meaningful ways to connect and grow as a more thoughtful community.
The MDRT Foundation has awarded a $1,500 grant to Start Me Up Niagara's Art Me Up program, a program designed for SMUN participants to archive their individual creative past and present. Through the exploration of multi-disciplinary arts, Art Me Up participants will have various opportunities in a safe studio environment, including workshops, facilitated open studios, access to a digital lab, and the establishment of web-based exhibition space to express personal memories and to map their jo...