Covenant House Vancouver would like to extend gratitude to BMO for their generosity and commitment to social change, particularly in helping youth overcome homelessness. In 2016, we embarked on an ambitious expansion project to create new and renovated spaces to better serve youth. When approached to participate, BMO responded with enthusiasm and were the largest corporate donor at that time. BMO’s gift of $1,000,000, raised the bar amongst the corporate community and influenced multiple subsequent donations.
BMO’s Gift in Action
Covenant House has been a home and safe space for thousands of youth since 1997. As the City has grown, so has the number of youth needing our help and we needed to step up. To meet the demand today and for the decade to come, we launched a project to build two purposely designed buildings at the intersection of Drake and Seymour Streets. These two buildings will be safe and welcoming spaces to provide immediate and long-term care and support services.
With BMO’s generosity towards our expansion, we have been able to:
- Complete construction of a 5-storey building
- Open our new Drop-in Centre serving an average of 106 youth each day
- Care for 28 female identified youth who are living with us in the Crisis Program
- Start construction on the second purpose-built facility at our original location at 575 Drake Street
Covenant House Vancouver 1302 Seymour Street 
Phase 2 Building site – our old building at 575 Drake Street
When the expansion project is complete, some further highlights will include:
- 14 new sanctuary beds for youth working to overcome substance use
- 21 new beds serving the immediate needs of young people in crisis
- 20 additional apartment units after the renovation of our 326 West Pender Street location, serving youth transitioning to independent living
- 70% increase in capacity in all of our programs
We extend our gratitude to BMO for their commitment to social change and for showing love and care for some of the most vulnerable young people in our community. Their gift has allowed us to grow and respond with compassionate solutions for young people, providing wrap-around services for those in need, and hope for a brighter future.
More on BMO’s commitment to social change:
The BMO community giving strategy is about continuous learning and understanding the broader impact of everything we do. We have a deep sense of pride in our responsibility and ensure that we, and our community partners, are agile and well-prepared to address any opportunities and challenges that the future holds.
Our commitment to act responsibly and think about the broader impact of everything we do is aligned with our sustainability principles and our values. Our core values of integrity, empathy, diversity, and responsibility, as well as our guiding principles around social change, financial resilience, community building and economic impact, are integral aspects of the way we work with our community partners to develop forward-thinking solutions that benefit society as a whole.