Youth Empowerment & Support Services, commonly referred to as YESS, is a

youth empowerment Youth empowerment is a process where children and young people are encouraged to take charge of their lives. They do this by addressing their situation and then take action in order to improve their access to resources and transform their consciou ...

and housing organization in

Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city ancho ...

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

History

YESS first registered as a not-for-profit in 1978, although its youth shelter at 9310 82 Avenue in Edmonton did not open until 1982.

Services

In 2016, YESS introduced the tagline "YESS is more than a shelter." Although YESS provides housing for at-risk youth in the

Edmonton Capital Region The Edmonton Metropolitan Region (EMR), also commonly referred to as Greater Edmonton or Metro Edmonton, is a conglomeration of municipalities centred on Alberta's provincial capital of Edmonton. The EMR's commonly known boundaries are coincide ...

, the organization is also dedicated to providing individualized support that addresses both diversion out of homelessness and general prevention of homelessness.

Buildings

The YESS buildings are located at 9310 82 Avenue in Edmonton, including the main shelter, a gazebo, and several storage buildings. The main building was built in 1905 as Edmonton Fire Hall No. 10 for the communities surrounding Mill Creek Ravine. In 1926,

the Salvation Army The Salvation Army (TSA) is a Protestant church and an international charitable organisation headquartered in London, England. The organisation reports a worldwide membership of over 1.7million, comprising soldiers, officers and adherents col ...

converted the fire hall into a shelter named Bonnie Doon Eventide Home, and in 1949, the main building became a single men's shelter. Although Ken Lenz has stated that "the building was vacant for almost a decade beginning in the early 1970s," the Salvation Army did not actually sell the building until 1979, with YESS taking over the building in early 1980s. In 1986, Edmonton company Rainbow Metal Products built eves, gutters, soffit, and fascia for YESS, whose buildings are now recognized for their Late Art Deco architectural style.

Region served

YESS is located in Edmonton's French Quarter, also known as Bonnie Doon. The neighborhood is home to Edmonton's Franco-Albertan community and contains the only

francophone French became an international language in the Middle Ages, when the power of the Kingdom of France made it the second international language, alongside Latin. This status continued to grow into the 18th century, by which time French was the l ...

university and the only Francophone high school west of

Manitoba Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...

, namely the University of Alberta's Campus Saint-Jean and École Maurice-Lavallée.Fédération des communautés francophones et acadiennes du Canada
Profil de la communauté francophone de l'Alberta
Géographie, p. 1 : « Dans la ville d'Edmonton elle-même, le secteur de Bonnie Doon, site de nombreuses institutions francophones, revendique le titre de quartier français. » Although YESS is a community organization located within a recognized

ethnic enclave In sociology, an ethnic enclave is a geographic area with high ethnic concentration, characteristic cultural identity, and economic activity. The term is usually used to refer to either a residential area or a workspace with a high concentration ...

in Edmonton, it serves youth from throughout the Edmonton metropolitan region.

Notes

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Youth Empowerment and Support Services Homeless shelters in Canada 1978 establishments in Canada Charities based in Canada Youth empowerment organizations