The meeting will be held in the Adventure Hotel Banquet Room, 616 Vernon St. (entrance on the Hall St. side).

To vote at the AGM, you must be an NCARES member in good standing with a paid membership at least 14 days in advance (September 26th, 2025). You can go to our website here to renew your membership www.nelsoncares.ca.

The Board of Directors looks forward to sharing all the hard work of the staff and volunteers with the community.

For more information on Nelson CARES Society, please visit our website at www.nelsoncares.ca.

Stephanie Myers (she/her)

Fund Coordinator

fundcoordinator@nelsoncares.ca

250.505.7410

On Saturday, Feb 22nd, Nelson CARES Society’s Coldest Night of the Year (CNOY) fundraising event will be taking place with hundreds of walkers hitting the chilly, dark streets of Nelson and over 100 volunteers keeping them safe, on track, fed and cheered on.

The funds raised during this event have supported the Ready for Home Program for the last eight years, and this year it will be the same. The Ready for Home Program operates out of Ward Street Place and supports those residents to stay safely housed. Research shows that if we can support people to stay housed for a period of 2 years, re-entry into homelessness is significantly diminished and health outcomes are dramatically improved. This program aims to intervene in the cycle of homelessness and work one-on-one with individuals to maintain their stability, something from which the whole community benefits.

Noa Dagan, Housing Support Coordinator at Ward Street Place said “Being in this role for over two years now, it has been so rewarding to have the opportunity to build strong, open, and trusting support relationships with clients and collaborate to help achieve their goals.

While resources feel increasingly scarce, it is also incredible to watch the ways in which the community and countless organizations have come together to fill in service gaps and show up to support one another.”

If you are curious about the event please reach out to cnoy@nelsoncares.ca or head to cnoy.org/nelson to sign up.

This is the 11th year that Nelson CARES Society is hosting this event and they are so thankful to the community for their continued support. The walkers, donors, volunteers, and sponsors make this event successful yearly.

Much gratitude to the 2025 sponsors who have already signed on to support this event: This year’s Lead Sponsor: Nelson & District Credit Union. Supporting Sponsors: Nelson Home Hardware Building Centre, Hemlock Homes, BC Housing, Columbia Basin Trust, Harmony Engineering, Ellenwood Homes, Urban Systems. Route Sponsors: Derek Deiner & Melanie Ward Mortgage Brokers, Kootenay Co-op Country Store, Nelson Ford, Rod Taylor Design, CitySpaces, and Terus Construction.

If your business is curious about sponsorship, please reach out to cnoy@nelsoncares.ca.

Contact info:

Stephanie Myers

Fund Coordinator – Nelson CARES Society

fundcoordinator@nelsoncares.ca

250.505.7410

If you are interested in the open house, and would like a information pamphlet, click here.

Because of the fast-paced nature of the event, there is a huge demand for volunteers who can help to pull off this event successfully and safely!

On Feb 22nd CNOY walkers will be checking in at 4pm before the walk starts at 5pm. There are a wide variety of volunteer roles to choose from, you can even volunteer for the event and still walk with your friends on event day. You can work outside before the event and help with route sign installation or during the event as a route marshall, or sign up to be rest stop host, or a support driver. Likewise, volunteers also will be needed inside before the event to assist with the setup and decoration of the two venues. There are lots of volunteer roles during the event, of course, everything from check-in crew and greeters, food team, including tear-down and clean-up.

Returning route marshal volunteer, Jay Blackmore shares “I love coming out to support Nelson CARES and the Coldest Night of the Year – it’s a fantastic way to get together as a community to support our most vulnerable residents, have some fun together – and get a bit of exercise too!”

If you are curious about volunteering for the event please reach out to cnoy@nelsoncares.ca or head to cnoy.org/nelson to sign up.

This is the 11th year that Nelson CARES Society is hosting this event and they are so thankful to the community for their continued support. The walkers, donors, volunteers, and sponsors make this event a success every year. The donations raised during the Coldest Night of the Year fundraiser stay locally and support the tenants to stay safely housed at Ward Street Place through the Ready for Home program.

Much gratitude to the 2025 sponsors who have already signed on to support this event: This year’s Lead Sponsor: Nelson & District Credit Union. Supporting Sponsors: Nelson Home Hardware Building Centre, Hemlock Homes, BC Housing, Columbia Basin Trust, Ellenwood Homes, Derek Deiner & Melanie Ward Mortgage Brokers, Kootenay Co-op Country Store, CitySpaces, Urban Systems, and Terus Construction.

If your business is curious about sponsorship, please reach out to cnoy@nelsoncares.ca.

Contact info:
Stephanie Myers
Fund Coordinator – Nelson CARES Society
fundcoordinator@nelsoncares.ca
250.505.7410

Nelson CARES Society hosted their Annual General Meeting on Wednesday, Oct 2nd at the Adventure Hotel with over 30 community members in attendance. The AGM was followed by celebrating the organization’s 50th anniversary serving the community.

During the AGM, Board Chair Ron Little shared his report about the organization’s operation including well wishes for former Executive Director, Dr. Jac Nobiss in their new role in the School of Social Work at the University of British Columbia. The organization has been operating smoothly with co-EDs during this time of transition. Amy Taylor and Zhenia Salikin have been sharing the role of leading the day-to-day operations of Nelson CARES.

Ron Little also presented former ED Jenny Robinson with a blank canvas which will become a commissioned painting from Lainey Benson. Jenny skillfully led NCARES for over 10 years during a time of significant growth and transition.

New board members

Board Treasurer Phyllis Nash shared the audited financial report showing the organization in fine financial health. There were elections of all of the standing board members as well as four new individuals: Dylan Griffith, Tammy Everts, Ainsleah Hastings and Tobias Gray. The board now stands at a robust 8 members.

Nelson CARES Society looks forward to serving the community making it a more inclusive and healthy space for all.

Stephanie Myers

Fund Coordinator – Nelson CARES Society

fundcoordinator@nelsoncares.ca

250.505.7410

• When: Wednesday October 30th, 10:00am – 1:00pm
• Where: The Adventure Hotel, conference room (616 Vernon Street)
• Coffee & snacks provided

Please RSVP by emailing: ncohcommunity@nelsoncares.ca with the subject line: “RSVP: [Your Name]”

• Feedback: If you cannot attend, we still want to hear from you! Please send an email with your suggestions on what we could prioritize to address and support homelessness in our community.

NCOH is the Community Advisory Board (CAB) for federal Reaching Home funding for Nelson.
NCOH projects are administered through the Nelson CARES Society, as decided by the CAB. 

The Nelson CARES Society Board of Directors warmly invites you

to join us for our Annual General Meeting on

Wednesday, October 2nd, 2024 at 5:30pm

Location: Adventure Hotel – Banquet Room

616 Vernon Street, Nelson

To vote at the AGM you must be a member in good standing with a paid membership at least 14 days in advance.

Here is the link to update your membership: Memberships

If you have auto-renewed last year, you do not need to renew again this year. Following the AGM, Nelson CARES Society will be celebrating our 50th year of serving the community. If you would like to attend, please check the box on the membership form in the link above.

For more information on Nelson CARES Society, please visit our office at 100-205 Hall Street.

The funds raised through the Coldest Night of the Year fundraiser stay local and support the Ready for Home program, which operates out of Ward Street Place.

Nelson CARES is committed to providing safe, affordable housing. This includes people leaving homelessness and those who have difficulty maintaining their housing due to multiple reasons, such as chronic illness and/or substance use. Sometimes, people need support to maintain their housing, and Nelson CARES has created a program to do just that; it is called Ready for Home. This program employs skilled Housing Support staff who work directly with the Ward Street Place residents.

This program provides transitional and stabilization support, including setting up appointments, providing referrals, establishing a sense of belonging and community, and supporting individuals with physical, emotional, and mental health challenges. The Housing Support staff works closely with the 40 residents of Ward Street Place to ensure they remain safely housed. The data shows conclusively that if we can support people to stay housed for a period of 2 years, re-entry into homelessness is significantly diminished, and health outcomes are dramatically improved.

Many of the residents have been in the building for over 15 years. ‘Mo’ who has called Ward Street Place home for 28 years shares “If I wasn’t at Ward Street Place, there is a good chance I would be on the streets”.

The goal of the Ready for Home program is to stop the cycle of homelessness and work one-to-one with individuals to maintain their stable, affordable housing. The program hosts community

Because of the fast-paced nature of CNOY event, almost 100 volunteers are needed to pull off this event successfully and safely! On Feb 24th CNOY walkers will be checking in at 4pm before the walk starts at 5pm.  Following which, meal service starts at 6pm welcoming CNOY walkers for a warm bowl of chili and smiles. and by 7pm most folks are headed home.

There are a wide variety of volunteer roles to choose from, you can even volunteer for the event and still walk with your friends on event day. You can work outside before the event and help with route sign installation or during the event as a route marshall, or sign up to be rest a stop host, or a support driver. Likewise, volunteers also will be needed inside before the event to assist with the setup and decoration of the two venues.  There are lots of volunteer roles during the event, of course, everything from check-in crew and greeters, food team, including tear-down and clean-up.

Returning route marshal volunteer, Jesse Woodward shares “”I have volunteered for our local CNOY events for many years now and I am always amazed at the wonderful community spirit and energy that this fundraiser inspires. Everyone walking and volunteering knows that the funds raised are directly helping some of the most vulnerable in our city and it is this direct kind action and help which generates such goodwill and cheer for all of those involved. Helping others in need brings out the best in people and CNOY is such a great way to do just that.”

If you are curious about volunteering for the event please reach out to cnoy@nelsoncares.ca or head to cnoy.org/nelson to sign up.

This is the 10th year that Nelson CARES Society is hosting this event and they are so thankful to the community for their continued support. The walkers, donors, volunteers, and sponsors make this event a success every year. The donations raised during the Coldest Night of the Year fundraiser stay locally and support the tenants to stay safely housed at Ward Street Place through the Ready for Home program.

Much gratitude to the 2024 sponsors who have already signed on to support this event: Nelson Home Hardware Building Centre, Ellenwood Homes, Hemlock Homes, Studio 9 Architecture & Design, BC Housing, Harmony Engineering, Hume Hotel & Spa, Inland Allcare Industrial Distribution, Kootenay Savings, Derek Deiner & Melanie Ward Mortage Brokers, Hallam & Associates Private Wealth Management, Kootenay Co-op Country Store, Rod Taylor Design, Nelson Ford, The Adventure Hotel, Urban Systems, Studio 9 Architecture & Planning, Terus Construction, Lasca Construction and Design, and Mistiso’s Place Vacation Rentals. Thanks to our media Sponsors are Kootenay Co-op Radio and Vista Radio.

If your business is curious about sponsorship, please reach out to cnoy@nelsoncares.ca.

Contact info

Stephanie Myers

Fund Coordinator – Nelson CARES Society

fundcoordinator@nelsoncares.ca

250.505.7410