June 25th, 2025
Year in Review – 2024-25
2024 marked the beginning of our 2024-27 Strategic Plan. This roadmap allows us to continue building upon the work of our previous strategic plan, while putting new ideas and dreams into action. We are grateful for the enthusiasm of our staff team who are involved in this important work over the next three years.
Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging (EDIB) is foundational to our Strategic Plan work. In June 2024, we hired an Equity Strategist, Mimi Mahmud, to oversee EDIB initiatives at EAFWR, grow community connections, and guide our Strategic Plan work. In this report, you’ll find an update from Mimi as she reflects on her first year at EAFWR.
This is part of a larger EDIB strategy that began with a demographic survey that was conducted in partnership with Wilfrid Laurier University to better understand who we are, who is represented, and how we can support underrepresented communities. We presented these findings at the OASIS (Ontario Agencies Supporting Individuals with Special Needs) Conference in May 2024. Work is underway, with support from the Lyle S. Hallman Foundation, to diversify representation at the EAFWR table.
Advocacy continues to be a key area of focus. We’ve written to and met with local MPs and MPPs about issues that impact people connected with our organization and the community at large. We’ve used our voice to share and raise awareness about Community Living Ontario’s #5ToSurvive and #WaitingToBelong campaigns, the Canada Disability Benefit, which was finalized in March 2025, and funding shortfalls faced by Ontario developmental service organizations with families on long waitlists for critical supports. In May of 2024, representatives participated in Community Living Day at Queens Park where we attended Question Period, and met with several MPP’s and enjoyed the Minister’s reception along with delegates from across the province.
As part of Habitat for Humanity Waterloo Region’s “Build Now” project, we signed a partnership with Union Cooperative Housing and will have access to 10 affordable apartments for people who use our services, with support provided by EAFWR. We are thrilled to see this project move forward and to continue bringing a disability lens to conversations around affordable housing. This project represents the beginning of a growing relationship with Union Cooperative Housing as we seek to expand access to affordable housing, enhanced by our support, with a community development lens, fostering a place of belonging for all.
We hosted educational voter information pop-ups for both the provincial and federal elections to help community members have their voices heard. We also became a registered organization to provide verification for people who do not have residential addresses.
We continue to be accredited with Imagine Canada and are now officially Broader Public Sector accountable, with our provincial funding exceeding ten million dollars annually.
As an organization with a hybrid work model, one of the ways we bring our team together is through staff service days, held twice a year. From blood donations at the Red Cross to gardening at the office and litter cleanup in the Mount Breithaupt neighbourhood, these days have fostered staff connection and allowed us to put our core values of belonging, community, equity and relationships into practice through giving back to our local community.
We are grateful to have had leases on both of our properties – the main office at 91 Moore Ave and the WALES building at 14 Braun St – extended for the next few years. As a team, we have taken time over the past year to reflect and consider, in the context of continuous growth, what we envision for our team and people supported in the community, and what kind of space reflects that vision. We look forward to sharing more updates with you soon.
We welcomed new families to our core programs, working with them to support their needs and goals. Creativity has fuelled the expansion of our programs and offerings to ensure there are spaces where people feel included, where they belong and can pursue their goals and interests. This includes our Teen Respite Days, SEEDS Program, and community partnerships with the Kitchener Public Library and Kinbridge Community Association.
Our social enterprise, the KW Library of Things, has seen an increase in membership and attendance at workshops, and continues to be a valuable community space for lending, collaboration, and connection. Our new Employable Skills Development Program, launched in December 2024, is equipping people with in-class and on the job skills and knowledge to pursue employment opportunities.
Upon reflection, much of our growth over the past year at EAFWR has happened below the surface. From exploring a new space for our team, to expanding our programs, we have planted the seeds and are now starting to see this important work begin to blossom. It continues to be an incredible honour to work with our amazing team of staff and volunteers. I look forward to all that we will accomplish in service of our community in the year ahead.
Serving the community together,
With gratitude,
Allan Mills
Executive Director