Denise and the New Outreach Workers

IMO Denise Maracle is Koo Gaa Da Win Manitou’s best employee. She’s been here for awhile and does a good job on what limited resources are available plus is an awesome and inspirational person to talk to. If UNH gave out awards/plaques for best employee of the year Denise would have my vote. :)

Now on to the outreach newbies.:) Lorraine Brown has a sparkling personality and I got the impression she’s there to help and it’s not “just a job”.

Charles Jacobs…is the baby in the building…..yep I kid you not…he’s younger then us tenants. lol. That being said he’s a joyful person always laughing with the group and helpful and supportive.

OMG! With all this sweet praise I’m dishing out on this post you'd expect to get a toothache. Eh? :D

Seriously I'm concerned….I’ve seen some great staff come on board then one day they’re gone, maybe they got fed up with the HSC 's asinine policies and quit or they were thrown under the bus.

Comments

Poor Working Environment

My unit is located near the KMHC office, along with a friendly wave or hello I see the junior staff going about their business in a cheerful manner with the exception of one employee. You would think KMHC has a pleasant working environment but that is not the case. March 2016 is when Urban Native Homes head office was forced to move from their former spacious location to the cramp basement level of KMHC. There were approx. 8-10 staff members at the time. Then the Urban Native Homes financial scandal broke out and soon after the current UNH acting director’s illicit past became public knowledge, everyone was worried will they have a job. Fearful meetings going on in the community room, the rumor mill was in full rotation while I just stood back and observed the panic. Check your search engine it states this building location is Urban Native Homes head office yet that is not correct. There is no real head office, the organization has s...

The Passing of Dean King

There's not many original KMHC tenants left that I know, last week I got word tenant Dean King passed away, we were not related and I remember when he moved in the building we got along well, we hung out often and he shared stories about his life and family. Eventually I notice he wasn't the sharpest pencil in the drawer and I started drifting away thus ended our friendship. Dean didn't have the usual addictions most male aboriginals endure he didn't drink or do drugs the problem was his mental state which I believe began after an auto accident years before. After I moved out of KMHC I'd often see him standing in line at the food bank in Gore Park in downtown Hamilton or hanging out with street friend Galina in Jackson Square food court. He didn't have many friends and other KMHC tenants just tolerated and accepted his strange behavior. He'd walk the streets looking disheveled and lost. When I received the news Dean died I didn't feel sad I felt surpri...

Sandy Holland

On February 27th 2025 I heard the passing of tenant Elder Sandy Holland. I knew she was in bad health and said to her friend she's ready to go. I met her years ago when she moved to KMHC she seem a bit daffy yet in a nice way, never spoke mean about others but had strong opinions about UNH staff. We would meet at UNH dinner functions and meetings and always offered me hug. She never got personal sharing her life stories with me which I can respect. RIP

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