The 519 Church St. Community Centre
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The 519 Church St. Community Centre (“The 519”, pronounced "five nineteen") is a not-for-profit community centre located at 519 Church St. in the Church and Wellesley neighbourhood of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The 519 serves both its local neighbourhood and the broader gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender communities in the Toronto area.
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[edit] Mission
The mission statement of The 519 is as follows: "The 519 is a meeting place and focus for its vital and varied downtown community. Within a supportive environment, it responds to community issues and needs by supplying the resources and opportunities to foster self-determination. It is connected to principles of accessibility, voluntarism, individual dignity and value, participation, and celebration." [citation needed]
To fulfill its mission, The 519 directly runs and co-sponsors a variety of social service programs, including: AIDS Memorial Anti-Violence Programme Anti-Poverty & Homelessness Programmes Children's Programmes Community Living Counselling Courses Groups Legal Services Older Adults Programmes Rainbow Book Trans Programmes [citation needed]
The 519 has also inspired similar organisations in other communities such as the GLBTTQ Community Centre of Ottawa.
[edit] Meeting space
The 519 also provides free meeting space for community member volunteers to develop their own programs. In 2003, The 519 housed 75 volunteer-run programs (in areas of community services, education, recreation, and self-help), and welcomed 140 user groups (in areas of community fundraising, off-site recreation, professional associations and unions, social activists, social service organizations and tenants’ organizations). The 519 estimates in its 2003 annual report that approximately 26,000 individuals visited the centre over 160,000 times.
People come to The 519 not only to receive and but also to provide social services. In 2003, 1673 volunteers contributed 31,577 hours of their time at The 519.[citation needed] Volunteers are central to the existence of programs at The 519. People choose to come to The 519 for a multitude of reasons, such as a particular social service need, recreational interest, or desire to give back to the community. The 519 fulfills a public function by providing space to community groups that may not otherwise have access to appropriate space.
[edit] Building
The City of Toronto owns the building and funds administrative and maintenance expenses.[citation needed] The 519 is a member agency of the United Way of Greater Toronto and has received funding from the Lesbian and Gay Community Appeal Foundation. Community members elect a volunteer board of management that has responsibilities for setting the Centre’s mission, vision, governance and strategic directions, and for overseeing the programs, finances and personnel.
