Lookout Housing and Health Society

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544 Columbia Street,
New Westminster, B.C., V3L 1B1
Canada
604-255-0340
[email protected]

Foundation Guide - Lookout Society

Mission

Lookout Housing and Health Society serves as a social safety-net for individuals in the Metro Vancouver area with low or no income. The organisation provides housing and other support services to help destitute people meet basic needs.

Lookout Housing and Health Society provides housing, shelter, health services, community centres, community outreach, and skill building programs.

Supported Causes

Lookout Housing and Health Society supports programs that help disadvantaged people who require housing, medical services, mental health treatment, and addiction therapy.

Projects are geared toward the homeless, mentally ill, people with low or no incomes, people with addictions, the disabled, and those who struggle with identity and social integration issues.

Projects

Projects include:

  • A 400-unit mixed-income affordable housing residence in Strathcona.
  • Tenant-Support Workers (TSWs) who help tenants obtain transitional housing or permanent supportive housing.
  • Emergency shelters – Nine shelters serving Vancouver, Surrey, the North Shore, New Westminster and Abbotsford.
  • Extreme-Weather-Response Shelters – When extreme weather alerts are issued, Lookout increases the number of shelter beds to ensure that those at risk are safe.
  • Mood-Disorders Association of British Columbia – Lookout merged with this association with the goal of better serving vulnerable populations.
  • Community Clean-Up – These programs promote cleaning up the environment while also boosting participants’ self-esteem.
  • Positive Haven Resource Centre – This facility offers a series of workshops as well as ongoing support for people living with HIV/AIDS or Hepatitis C.
  • Mobile Harm-Reduction Outreach – An outreach team that delivers harm-reduction supplies throughout Delta, White Rock, Langley, and Aldergrove.
  • Powell Street Getaway – A safe hangout for people with mental illness. This centre offers programs that encourage people to participate in life-skills development opportunities.
  • Other Women’s Lives (OWL) – A biweekly program that helps women deal with abusive relationships and make positive life-changes.
  • SafePoint – A supervised-consumption service with the goal of preventing deaths from overdoses and offering mental-health treatment and withdrawal management.
  • The dental clinic provides dental serves those who cannot afford proper treatment.
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  • Surrey North Community Health Clinic – A free walk-in clinic for disadvantaged people with chronic illnesses, addictions, trauma, and mental health problems.

The Foundation's History

Lookout Housing and Health Society was founded in 1971 after the staff at the Connolly House youth hostel noticed a trend of older homeless people asking for beds. They applied to the government to open a modest nighttime-only shelter in an area known as Skid Row. The Lookout shelter soon opened its doors and street patrols picked up homeless people from the streets. It became clear that most of these people were older alcoholics who needed help solving problems in life, finding accommodations, and needed treatment and other services. The organisation grew over the years to offer four 24-hour shelters and a range of other services, including outreach, long-term housing, medical services, and activity centres.