Thriving for All
According to the B.C. government, there are approximately 557,000 people in BC living below the poverty line – 99,000 are children. We are leading the way in bringing awareness to poverty issues in the area and finding solutions for the most vulnerable people in our communities.
Our mission is to reduce poverty and build a community in which everyone is thriving and feels included.
We're working with community partners to improve:
- Housing
- Social, health & community services
- Food security
- Learning & development
- Creating a vibrant & inclusive community
Ending Working Poverty
Working poverty is a complex issue. It describes people who work full time yet still do not have enough financial resources to support their basic needs of adequate shelter and food. We’re aiming to change that in Trail.
Building Community Resilience by Ending Working Poverty is a new collaboration between five communities across Canada, and Trail is the BC participant. The others are Chatham-Kent, Ontario, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, and Drumheller, Alberta.
Together, we will reduce the number of individuals and families working yet still living in poverty by 5% in our community.
By looking at working poverty and aiming to reduce it in Trail, we will create a place where more of our residents can thrive and prosper.
Heather is our poverty reduction specialist working on this initiative. Contact Heather to learn more.
Common Access Card
Everyone should have equal access to recreational and cultural amenities in our communities. Another of our poverty reduction initiatives is the Common Access Card. It is a simple, streamlined way to offer low-barrier access to recreation, leisure, and cultural activities in our communities to people living with low income.
The Common Access Card allows people to enjoy these services with dignity and a single vetting process: show the card and you get the discount rather than having to apply at each place. Getting the card means the person or family has been vetted and qualifies for the discounts. No extra questions, no fuss.
We have launched the Common Access Cards with the recreation services of Trail, Rossland, Warfield and Beaver Valley (run by RDKB) participating. We’re planning to add other recreational and cultural organizations as we go.
What is Thriving for All?
Thriving for All is the official poverty reduction plan adopted by the City of Trail, City of Rossland, Village of Warfield, Village of Montrose, and Village of Fruitvale. It is a project of the Skills Centre. Learn how your community can be involved.
We advocate for a living wage
The Skills Centre is one of 450 certified living wage employers in BC that has stepped up to pay direct and contract employees wages sufficient to support families. The living wage is the hourly rate that each of two parents working full-time must earn to support a family of four based on the actual costs of living in a particular community. It is different from the minimum wage.
The living wage affords a decent, but modest, standard of living without the extras many of us take for granted. It does not cover credit card, loan or other debt payments, savings for retirement or for children’s future education or the costs of caring for a disabled, seriously ill or elderly family member.
Housing and food costs in particular continue to soar. The financial relief provided by government measures–such as affordable childcare programs and increases in benefits connected to income–was intended to help offset rising costs, but is outpaced by the rising cost of rent.
We advocate to businesses and organizations to pay a living wage. We also advocate for government to address these issues to make life more affordable for everyone, and to make it easier for employers to pay their workers a living wage.
Community Kitchens
Community Kitchens invites people living with low income to participate in meal preparation once a week, creating an increased sense of community as well as improved food security. Participants prepare enough food that day for their household and learn budgeting skills along with food preparation ideas.
Community Kitchens offers a weekly get together where our coordinator helps participants select inexpensive food, focused on what is readily available at the foodbank and on sale at local grocers. It is an opportunity to prepare and enjoy food as a group, allowing participants social as well as nutritional benefits.
Community Kitchens is running its last session of the spring right now. We are always looking for funding and ways to make it a year-round offering. Contact us if you’d like to get on the list to attend or if you have questions about supporting Community Kitchens.
A big thank you to our current Community Kitchens supporters, Coldest Night of the Year, Trail Safeway, Hamber Foundation, and First Presbyterian Church, Trail.
Inquire today
We're a Living Wage Employer
A living wage sets a higher standard than the minimum wage: it is what a family needs to earn to provide the basic needs based on the actual costs of living in a community. Living Wage Canada notes that it gets families out of severe financial stress, lifts them out of poverty and provides a basic level of economic security.
