Habitat for Humanity Vancouver Island North is expanding its impact in a new way.

This year, Habitat VIN officially launched a Repairs Program, joining a national initiative led by Habitat for Humanity Canada that helps preserve safe, stable housing through essential repair and rehabilitation projects. While Habitat is best known for building affordable homeownership opportunities, the new program allows the organization to apply its construction expertise in another important way: protecting and strengthening existing housing in our communities.

For Habitat VIN, the program represents an opportunity to continue creating meaningful impact during non-build years while keeping skilled staff, volunteers, and community partners engaged in the work of building a stronger region.

"At its heart, Habitat has always been about helping people access safe and decent housing," said Jeff West, Executive Director for Habitat VIN. "The Repairs Program allows us to continue living that mission in new ways, supporting community partners whose housing programs are already making a tremendous difference in people's lives."

For its pilot year, Habitat VIN has partnered with two local organizations that provide critical housing and support services in the Comox Valley: L'Arche Comox Valley and Dawn to Dawn Action on Homelessness Society. Together, the projects will help preserve and expand supportive housing capacity for up to 14 residents.

Protecting Housing at Jubilee House

One project focuses on Jubilee House, a supportive home operated by L'Arche Comox Valley that provides housing for adults with intellectual disabilities and live-in assistants. The home has served residents for approximately 25 years, with some individuals calling it home for more than two decades.

Habitat VIN will complete priority repairs that improve safety, accessibility, and building durability, including exterior repairs and interior restoration work. These improvements will help residents continue living safely and comfortably in the familiar environment they know and trust.

Addressing these issues now will help prevent more significant deterioration in the future while preserving a valuable supportive housing resource for the community.

Helping Rainbow House Reach Its Full Potential

The second project will help complete the remaining construction work at Gukwa̱s sa Wagalus, also known as Rainbow House, a youth housing initiative led by Dawn to Dawn Action on Homelessness Society.

While the home is already welcoming residents, important construction work remains to fully complete the project and bring the home to its intended capacity. Habitat VIN will complete the remaining bedrooms and some interior construction required to finish the final phase of development.

Once completed, the project will allow Rainbow House to fully realize its vision as a supportive transitional housing program for 2SLGBTQIA+ youth, including Indigenous youth who are disproportionately represented among those experiencing housing insecurity.

For Dawn to Dawn, the project is about far more than construction.

As Executive Director Angela Fletcher recently shared, many young people experiencing homelessness have also experienced rejection, discrimination, and instability. Rainbow House was created as a safe, affirming place where youth can feel supported, build connections, and begin imagining a different future. Today, several youth and a live-in caretaker already call the house home, with additional residents expected as the project continues toward completion.

"Gukwa̱s sa Wagalus is more than a place to stay. It is a place where young people can feel safe, supported, and free to be themselves," said Fletcher. "Habitat for Humanity Vancouver Island North's partnership is helping us complete the final work needed to create additional housing opportunities for youth and support healing, connection, and belonging."

The home has been intentionally shaped through relationships with Indigenous community members and cultural leaders, incorporating artwork, cultural teachings, and community connection throughout the space.

A New Way to Advance Habitat's Mission

Through the Repairs Program, Habitat VIN will serve as general contractor for both projects, coordinating procurement, scheduling, trades, inspections, safety oversight, and project management.

The organization brings significant experience to the work, having helped create 51 Habitat homes and completed seven home refurbishments across the region. The current build team has directly contributed to 35 of those homes and six refurbishments, including management of complex multi-trade construction projects.

The program also aligns with Habitat's commitment to sustainability. By extending the life of existing housing and addressing maintenance issues before they become major problems, repairs can reduce waste and avoid the environmental impacts associated with replacement construction. Wherever possible, Habitat VIN will source materials through its ReStores and divert reusable materials from landfill through established recycling and reuse programs.

Most importantly, the Repairs Program demonstrates the power of partnership.

By combining Habitat's construction expertise with the frontline housing experience of organizations like L'Arche Comox Valley and Dawn to Dawn, these projects will help protect existing housing, bring new housing opportunities online, and strengthen the network of support available to vulnerable residents across our region.

Because safe and decent housing takes many forms, and sometimes creating impact starts not with building something new, but with preserving and strengthening what our community already has.

As Fletcher shares, "Every person deserves more than a place to stay. They deserve to feel safe, to be seen, and to belong."

And through the launch of the Repairs Program, Habitat VIN is helping make that vision a reality.