Islamic Family and Social Services Association. Annual Report

Transcription

1 Islamic Family and Social Services Association Annual Report

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3 A Message from the Board of Directors The past year marked the 20 th anniversary of Islamic Family and Social Services Association s service to the Edmonton community. The people, size and services of the agency may have changed, but the commitment to making our community better for everyone has not. When a few community members began operating IFSSA out of a basement 20 years ago they could hardly have imagined the range of services we would be offering today, the partnerships we would be involved in and the thousands of smiles we would see as a result of helping people in need. But that is how it all begins; with a few kindhearted people wanting to see better for their fellow neighbours and that is still what drives our staff and board members today. We are also fortunate to be supported by a very generous and big-hearted donor community who give of their time, money and energy to help grow IFSSA. Grants from various levels of government as well as foundations have helped to increase our capacity and expand our services. There are many other wonderful agencies in Edmonton that are also working hard to help those less fortunate in our community and we are proud to be counted among their ranks by providing social services that are culturally and spiritually sensitive to anyone who comes to our doors. We know that we still have a long way to go but we are up for the challenge and will continue to look to the support of our community, forge new partnerships and relationships and work with all levels of government to provide services that are much needed by the Edmonton community. In Peace and Friendship, The Board of Directors of Islamic Family and Social Services Association (IFSSA) 3

4 About IFSSA Established in 1992, Islamic Family and Social Services Association (IFSSA), is a grassroots, non-profit registered charity dedicated to providing services in response to the social needs of the Edmonton community within an Islamic context. Objectives Provide basic necessities such as food, clothing and other emergency assistance to those in need to complement other community resources. Help prevent individuals from forming destructive habits such alcoholism, drug abuse or other antisocial behavior. Provide appropriate, culturally-sensitive counseling services through qualified professionals. Assist refugees, new immigrants and newcomers to Edmonton in integrating comfortably into the community and society at large. Collaborate with community agencies and be a resource for culturally appropriate services. Operate as a vibrant, professional and well-resourced agency in accordance with our core values. Operate programs for youth and parents focused on strengthening the family. Vision Healthy Families and Community Mission To meet the basic physical and emotional needs of the community within an Islamic context. 4

5 Board of Directors Ayub Umarji Abdul Aziz Khan Sehban Khan Naveed Cheema Howaida Hassan Nida Farooqui Syed Anwar Imtiaz Zainul Lubna Zaeem Omar Yaqub Mana Ali Imran Qureshi Abid Arian President Past President Vice President Treasurer Secretary Fundraising Chair Essential Needs Program Chair Essential Needs Program Co-Chair Fostering Healthy Families Program Chair The Green Room* Program Chair Director Director Director * Formally the Youth Development and Parent Education Program Staff Essential Needs Program Seema Khawaja, Client Services Manager Robeena Rifaqat, Client Services Naila Mohamed, Client Services Fostering Healthy Families Program Jordanna Aboughoche, Program Director Naheed Amjad, Outreach Worker Iram Bilal, Outreach Worker Fatima Abshir, Outreach Worker The Green Room Meg Lyons, Program Director 5

6 Our Programs and Accomplishments Essential Needs Program IFSSA s Essential Needs Program offers a safe and welcoming space for individuals and families to seek help. Essential Needs clients are largely newcomers to Edmonton and are either recent refugees or immigrants. The services offered include a Halal food bank, clothing and household items bank and referral services to a variety of agencies around the city. The Essential Needs Client Service staff work hard to meet the needs of clients who often face multiple challenges including financial, language and transportation barriers and sometimes Did you know? IFSSA distributed 2,100 hampers over the past year and an additional 317 during Ramadan. That s nearly a 50% increase in hampers distributed over last year. physical disabilities. In addition clients who are newly arrived in Edmonton often have experienced traumatic situations in their home countries that may have caused them to flee. The Client Service staff recognize these challenges and work with each individual or family to understand their needs, make appropriate referrals and offer the best possible services within IFSSA s mandate. 885 Number of families served this year The Essential Needs program relies not only on the dedication and compassion of the staff but also on the support and supervision of two volunteer board members; the Program Chair and Co-Chair as well as a number of dedicated community volunteers who provide their time in making food hampers and food deliveries. The Essential Needs program is funded solely by the generous donations from community members and enjoys the support of the Edmonton Food Bank. 2,142 Number of children served this year Clothing and Household items The Clothing and Household Items Bank is also frequently used by many IFSSA clients. These items are kindly donated by our community members and sorted by staff and volunteers. In order to improve this operation, a committee was created, led by the volunteers. Often some community members bring or leave items of poor quality outside of the premises and IFSSA is then obliged to dispose of the items which can be costly. School Supplies and Winter Coats Also Essential Over the past several years, IFSSA has been a recipient agency of the United Way s Tools for Schools and Coats for Kids and Families programs. Through these two wonderful programs, IFSSA was able to distribute nearly 600 backpacks filled with back to school essentials, up from 540 in In addition in 2012 IFSSA provided 240 used winter coats for kids and their families. 6

7 Ramadan Toy Drive IFSSA has always been blessed with giving and resourceful volunteers, and this year has been no different. A number of community volunteers donated their time and energy to organize IFSSA s first ever Ramadan Toy Drive which resulted in over 400 children receiving gifts of toys, clothing and special treats to celebrate the Muslim festival of Eid. Volunteers The Backbone of Essential Needs 1,718 Number of volunteer hours and counting! Volunteer activities constitute one of the most important and effective parts of the Essential Needs Program. This year nearly 100 volunteers donated their time to help their Edmonton neighbours from packaging and delivering food hampers to sorting food and clothing donations. Volunteer involvement and availability for various activities is organized through the Volunteer Coordinator who is herself a volunteer! Interested community members should contact the IFSSA office for more details. Fostering Healthy Families Program This year marked the beginning of the fourth year of IFSSA s Fostering Healthy Families Program. The program has been designed to provide direct outreach supports to victims of family violence in the immigrant community in a culturally and spiritually sensitive manner. A range of services and programs are available to anyone who is in a situation of domestic violence. The team is comprised of a program director and three outreach workers as well as a committee of four volunteer board members. 74 Number of families helped this year Outreach Services Outreach services provided by Fostering Healthy Families are the most comprehensive component of the program. Immediate and long-term client needs are determined by working one-on-one with an outreach worker. Using a client-centered, multi-disciplinary approach, the outreach worker and client work together to help meet the client goals while empowering the client to ultimately become independent and safe in their situation. 111 Number of children helped this year Typical outreach services used by our clients include culturally and religiously sensitive in-take and assessments, risk management, advocacy, housing and legal supports, referrals, as well as culturally sensitive therapy. Culturally Sensitive Counselling In many instances client needs go beyond the scope of outreach alone. Due to the traumatic nature of abuse, clients often require counseling to help relieve symptoms such as stress, fear, anxiety and depression. Clients in the program have free access to a Muslim female provisional psychologist as well as a Muslim male clinical psychologist. 7

8 Serenity Group- Therapeutic Support Group for Women Our therapeutic support group for victims of domestic abuse has been very effective and well received by participants. The goal of the group is to provide a safe place for survivors to receive therapeutic supports and education on abuse while building a network of support with other women that attend the group. The group is facilitated by a clinician with a Masters degree in counselling with several years of experience in working with victims of domestic violence. The sessions are co-facilitated by IFSSA outreach staff. In the most recent reporting period, clients accessed the support group 115 times. Essential Needs Support The Fostering Healthy Families program takes a holistic approach to helping victims and their families. Financial hardships are common when these difficult situations arise. IFSSA helps clients by providing food hampers, gift cards and other household items as needed. Sisters Circle After School Program Through funding provided by the Canadian s Women s Foundation, the Fostering Healthy Families program has been able to expand its services to include a prevention component - a girls after school program The Sisters Circle. The program is designed to provide a safe place for visible minority girls age 12 to 15 to explore violence situations as they potentially presents themselves in our many life relationships between friends, family and co-workers. The program promotes violence prevention strategies explored through a variety of topics including self-awareness, setting boundaries, healthy versus unhealthy relationships, bullying, self-image, stress management, safety planning and nutrition. The aim is to have young girls recognize the warning signs of violent Affirmation Boxes created by IFSSA staff for Sisters Circle participants as a self-help tool relationships and to strengthen themselves and be self-aware in order to avoid becoming involved in such relationships. Walk for your Life Walk for Your Life is the Fostering Healthy Families annual public outreach event that aims to educate the general public on the long and short term effects of family violence, ways to recognize the signs of family violence and increasing community awareness on family violence. The event is a collaborative effort between Metis Child and Family Services and IFSSA. The event takes place annually during November, which is Family Violence Prevention Month in Alberta. Participants from Sisters Circle created the theme Be at Peace Not in Pieces for the Walk for your Life event. 8

9 Benevolence Fund The Benevolence Fund is a new project created in the past year by IFSSA to provide individuals and families with demonstrated financial need in our community with financial assistance. Through the Benevolence Fund, IFSSA has been able to assist people in need through subsidies for things such as rent, utilities, medical expenses and tuition fees to help individuals to work towards becoming selfsufficient. Referrals to the fund often come through IFSSA s Essential Needs and Fostering Healthy Families Program outreach and client service staff who work directly with the clients and have a good understanding of their needs and challenges. To date the fund has helped 15 families with payment of various expenses with payments being made directly to the service provider not the client. Not surprisingly most requests for assistance have come from families who are struggling to make their monthly rent payments. Given Edmonton s low occupancy rate, high rent rates and the projected economic and population growth in the city, this trend for rent subsidy requests is expected to continue. The Green Room Youth Program Changing for the Next Generation Beginning in July 2012, IFSSA restructured its youth programming following a community needs assessment that revealed the top barriers for youth participation in community. Over 150 youth, social workers, youth workers, psychologists, and parents were interviewed and a youth program manager, Meg Lyons, was hired to develop a new program, with input from a newly developed youth leadership council and a steering committee. The committee was made up of leaders in the community with experience in program development and youth work. After analysis of the community needs assessment and considerable branding and communications consultation with the steering committee and leadership council The Green Room youth program was formed. Three program focus areas were chosen to address the above barriers were Meaningful Connection, Growth and Service. Program Overview The Green Room seeks to create an open space for youth to foster meaningful connections, grow, and serve the community. The program vision is a Muslim community that nurtures the spiritual, educational & emotional needs of youth. The program mission is to cultivate meaningful connection, growth and service opportunities, rooted in Islam and relevant to time and place. Program Activities Currently, the Green Room offers on average 3-4 weekly activities for youth focused on our three program themes. Over 100 people have participated in the programming to date. 9

10 Program Service/Activity (June-October) Total # of Offered Participants Being Muslim weekly discussion on identity and spirituality Weekly 20 Cityscapes outdoor program focused on social connections and training programs for youth on community organizing and service Monthly Freestyle Fridays open mic spoken word night Bi-weekly Al-Hikmah Monthly 30 Leadership Council Weekly 16 Inner City Dinners Community Service Program Quarterly 30 Café (name TBD) Afterschool Study Circle (name TBD) Daily Monday and Friday Daily Tuesday and Thursday TBD TBD 2012 Achievements Launched Leadership Council which provides input to IFSSA and wider community on youth related issues and supports delivery of youth programs Meg Lyons hired as new Program Manager selected after national hiring campaign drew over 70 applicants. New central and accessible space for the program secured and completed located in the Boardwalk building downtown and partnership secured with Center High to run a mental health awareness project with the students. We are currently planning a listening campaign with the student population and have conducted numerous presentations at the school. As a result of our community organizer training two of the 2013 mayoral (Karen Lebovici & Don Iveson) visited the Green Room for an intimate Q&A session. Q & A with Don Iveson in The Green Room during mayoral campaign 10

11 Since July 2013 community support has been generous and positive including monetary donations of $2,500 and in kind donations. The Green Room s first program Open Doors Ramadan a matching program for individuals celebrating Ramadan alone with families in the community for a nightly iftar was featured on CBC Radio and CBC TV in July See CBC Coverage: Inner City Dinner Program The Inner City Dinner Program reflects Muslims living their faith and working together to serve a warm hearty meal to the City s underprivileged. A single dinner involves a core team of organizers and 50 to 80 volunteers contributing over 200 hours of time. A typical dinner event costs under $3000 and serves over 800 meals at a cost of less than $4 a plate. The program has been running for over a decade. In 2012 IFSSA increased the program s frequency and expanded it to include a new venue: the Hope Mission. Over the last 12 months, the Muslim communities of Edmonton held four dinners, three at the Boyle Street Community Co-op and one at the Hope Mission, and served over 3,200 meals to Edmonton's inner city community. This effort involved over 100 volunteers putting in 800 hours of planning, labour and cooking. The event included Muslims from all walks of life, from seven to seventy, from South Side Edmonton to Somalia. It saw whole families, couples, seniors, imams, congregants and junior high students all working together for a worthwhile cause. The dinners also offered a good opportunity to partner with the University of Alberta Muslim Students Association for two of the dinners and provided for mentoring and guidance to young students looking to give back. These dinners make a positive difference to those being helped, the volunteers who make it happen and in improving the perception of Muslims. Leadership in the program rotates on a continual basis ensuring skills building, mentorship and succession planning. 11

12 Financials Statement of Operations, year ended July 31 Revenue Donations and tithes (zakat, sadaqa) $ 407,682 $ 343,549 Fostering Healthy Families program 159, ,331 The Green Room program 65,842 78,303 Sister s Circle program 15,587 - Patronage dividends 1,970 1,890 Grant revenue general operations 2, , ,073 Program Expenditures Benevolence Fund 9,907 - Essential Needs 303, ,880 Fostering Healthy Families 159, ,331 The Green Room 65,842 81,103 Sisters Circle 15, , ,314 Excess of revenue after program expenditures 98, ,759 Expenditures Advertising and promotion - 1,237 Amortization 6,717 6,806 Bank charges 1, Condominium fees 1, Office 1,644 2,168 Professional fees 1, Repairs and maintenance 3,952 5,927 Salaries and Wages 32,108 22,353 Telephone and utilities 1,276 1,479 Travel 1,028 3,835 50,898 45,561 Excess of revenue over expenditures 47,807 73,198 12

13 Acknowledgements IFSSA would like to thank our many wonderful volunteers, donors and funders for making a difference to our community. Our Funders and Partners (in alphabetical order) Canadian Women s Foundation City of Edmonton Edmonton Community Foundation Edmonton Food Bank Edmonton Muslim Community & Mosques Province of Alberta United Way University of Alberta Muslim Students Association 13

14 IFSSA Annual General Meeting Minutes Sunday October :30 p.m. (started at approx. 3:05 p.m.) Attendees: See attached list Greeting and Prayer IFSSA President Aziz Khan opened the AGM with a welcome greeting. Prayer recitation was made by Ammar Gill. Aziz reviewed IFSSA s vision, mission and gave a brief background about becoming a board member (board nominations) AGM Minutes Approval Nida Farooqui (IFSSA Secretary) introduced board members and reviewed meeting minutes from last year. Omar Yaqub moved for the acceptance of 2011 Annual General Body Minutes. Seconded by G. Nabi Chaudhary. All in Favour. Aziz Khan thanked staff and the work they have done over the last year Agenda Approval Howaida Hassan moved for the agenda to be accepted. Omar Yaqub seconded. Carried. A Year in Review Presentations Essential Needs o Program Chair Syed Anwar reviewed how Essential Needs Program is managed and the important role it plays at IFSSA. o Informed attendees the program is not supported by the Government solely dependent on community donations. o He also reviewed hamper size and how needs of individuals are determined. o Drastic increase from last year to this year in the number of clients. o Reviewed breakdown of hampers distributed. o Review of clothing bank no criteria to receive these services, anyone can use the clothing bank. o More than 300 families received school supplies through IFSSA collaboration with United Way. o Clients also received mattresses through IFSSA collaboration with Sleep Country Canada o Syed acknowledged hard work by employee (Seema Khawaja) and volunteers. He also recognized excellent efforts of Program Co-Chair Imtiaz Zainul for coordinating the food bank supplies. 14

15 Inner City Dinner Program Program lead Omar Yaqub reviewed the importance of serving others. Informed attendees of the expansion of the dinner (formally known as Boyle Street Dinner) increase of frequency of dinners plus expanding services to another agency: The Hope Mission Over 3,000 meals served to the less fortunate. Good media coverage. Omar explained how the dinners enhance leadership in our community (volunteers coordinate food, media etc. on a rotating basis). Youth Development and Parenting Education Program (YDPE) Program Chair Omar Yaqub explained the need to fill critical needs of youth in the community Review of last year s achievements. To respond to the increasing needs, a bold but necessary decision was made to restructure the program. Shared information and work of a new steering committee and the many diverse individuals involved. Reviewed information on the results of a needs assessment. Fostering Healthy Families (FHF) Program Chair (and Vice President) Howaida Hassan reviewed how the FHF program is funded through Child and Family Services from the Government of Alberta. Review of what the program does (provides direct outreach support and free counselling services) and the target market. Review of the types of programs offered and what makes the FHF program unique. o Explained how FHF provides culturally-sensitive programming Reviewed program team: staff (Jordanna Abougoche, Naheed Amjad, Sabah Mohamed, and Hany Mohamed) Program Chair (Howaida) and Co-Chair (Lubna Zaeem) and a volunteer support committee. Reviewed FHF program statistics from March 2011-March 2012, the grant program year. Review of Serenity Group and value of this support group in bringing women together. Co-Chair Lubna Zaeem also added excellent work that is being done by staff to network and cooperate with other Edmonton agencies who help victims of family violence including women s shelters and government support agencies. Aziz Khan acknowledged Fundraising Chair Sehban Khan and his/his team s strong efforts as well as the fact that Fundraising Dinner was best up to date. Financials Treasurer Naveed Cheema provided a review of the financials o Summary of IFSSA revenue and expenditures Naveed explained how members are not required to approve the financials this is the board s responsibility as they are custodians of the financials. However, approval is required for the appointment of IFSSA s auditors. 15

16 o Naveed motioned to approve the continuing appointment of IFSSA s current auditors (BDO Canada LLP). Omar Yaqub seconded. All in favour. Question and Answer Aziz Khan opened the floor for questions Gulzar Ahmad mentioned the culture of dependence and that the board should consider allocating funds to develop employment training programs to help clients become selfsufficient.syed Anwar responded by acknowledging IFSSA s relationship with Edmonton Mennonite Centre and providing opportunities to those individuals who are capable of moving forward in society. Also mentioned IFSSA is making efforts to assist clients in other ways as well. Rafi Farooqui asked if IFSSA does interviews with clients about their financial situations before services are provided to them. Aziz Khan explained the interview/ assessment process. Natasha Butt asked why and in what kind of ways the YDPE program is changing. Omar Yaqub explained there will continue to be a focus on preventative programming, but the focus will be on youth aged He further explained the adjustment in programming to focus on safe spaces for youth, youth-led activities and mentorship opportunities. Zaeem Siddiqi asked about the over expenditure of YDPE for the last two years and if more grants are being looked into. Omar Yaqub explained this year the program accessed SCiP funding (Serving Communities Internship Program) which provides students with bursaries. He mentioned they are also looking into other funding. Zaeem Siddiqi further inquired about how the deficiency in revenue is met. Naveed Cheema explained we also have an additional fund called CIOG (Community Investment Operating Grant) which can be utilized for additional needs. Zaeem Siddiqi commented on more people going to the IFSSA office, donations have increased and asked which steps has IFSSA taken over the last year to make the organization more visible? Aziz Khan explained the programs were explained well at the Annual Fundraising Dinner. He also mentioned the networking IFSSA has with all mosquers (i.e. FHF program involves Markaz, Al Rashid and Rahma mosque) and that some programs are offered in these venues on a regular basis. Aziz also mentioned the recent e-newsletter which Omar Yaqub created and has been sent out. Omar Yaqub also explained plans for a new website and expansion of inner city dinner programs. Zaeem Siddiqi inquired about an office relocation to make IFSSA more visible. Aziz Khan explained discussion has been made on this area and it requires a lot of planning i.e. cost. We need to do appropriate homework in this are before we move this a step forward. Omar Yaqub mentioned through SCiP we have student researchers and there is a potential possibility of partnering of partnering with new construction project in south side for additional office space. Gulzar Ahmad suggested IFSSA is dependent on government funding and a good effort is being made on establishing relationships. He suggested developing expertise by inviting other communities to meetings and including this effort in grants. He also mentioned the importance of knowing where the organization is going and developing a 3-5 year business plan. Omar responded to this by explaining over the last year IFSSA met with two experts in strategic 16

17 planning. He further mentioned the Fostering programming effort and how it can be a revenue centre for IFSSA. Lubna Zaeem also commented on participants not only being Muslim in FHF and how the program s services are open to all (she provided example of Aboriginal women clients). Gulzar Ahmad mentioned the Government is undergoing a social policy framework and programs need to be result oriented so it will filter down at this level they will say we need to show what we have done. He mentioned that we need to position ourselves so we don t lose what we have done and prepare for that so we are ready for that change. Elections Aziz Khan introduced G. Nabi Chaudhary to facilitate elections. Omar Yaqub nominated Imran Qureshi. Seconded by Farooq Haqq. Syed Anwar nominated Ayub Umarji, seconded by Aziz Khan. Aziz Khan nominated Nida Farooqui. Seconded by Omar Yaqub. Howaida nominated Lubna Zaeem. Seconded by Aziz Khan. Howaida nominated Aziz Khan. Seconded by Sajjad Hussain. Syed Anwar nominated Abid Arian. Seconded by Imtiaz Zainul. Aziz Khan nominated Omar Yaqub. Seconded by Nida Farooqui. Aziz Khan withdrew his name No election needed all vacant positions filled. Closing Aziz Khan thanked everyone and expressed his commitment to continue helping IFSSA. Aziz made closing dua. Closing: 4:18 17

18 List of Attendees of the IFSSA 2012 Annual General Meeting 1. Khwaja Gulzar Ahmad 2. Sajjad Hussain 3. Ghulam Mohammad Khan 4. G. Nabi Chaudhary 5. Abid Arain 6. Imtiaz Zainul 7. Sayeed Rushd 8. Howaida Hassan 9. Natasha Butt 10. Mana Ali 11. Tahmina Ahsan Gill 12. Aasia Kausar 13. Aqeela (Anjum) Khalid 14. Amina Hussain 15. Sajeeda Hussain 16. Imran Qureshi 17. Farukh Haque 18. Sehban Khan 19. Naveed Cheema 20. Syed Anwar 21. Omar Yaqub 22. Dr. Aziz Khan 23. Ayub M. Umarji 24. Rafi Farooqui 25. Lubna Zaeem 26. Nida Farooqui 27. Seema Farooqui 28. Alisha Shah 29. Tim Weis 30. Zaeem Siddiqi 18

19 ISLAMIC FAMILY AND SOCIAL SERVICES ASSOCIATION #85, Street Edmonton, Alberta T6E 6M8 TEL: FAX: