Gayflor Maiwo remembers the first time he walked into his apartment.
“When I got the key and entered my place, I cried.”
The first night, he was so excited he couldn’t sleep. Now, when his shift ends, he looks forward to going home.
“When I’m off work, I hurry to get back to my place,” says Gayflor, who found a job as a janitor through the HopeWorks employment program.
“I’ve got privacy, independence, and my boundaries back.”
Just over a year earlier, in November 2024, Gayflor had been couch-surfing after losing his home. He enrolled in Hope Mission’s addiction recovery program, graduated 14 months later, and moved into his own place in January.
Stories like Gayflor’s reflect a broader approach to housing—one designed to meet people where they are and promote long-term stability. In 2025, 838 people were housed through Hope Mission’s spectrum of housing programs.
“There are different levels of need, and different streams of housing to meet those needs,” says Ade Adeoye, director of emergency care and housing.
“Our housing teams assess each client’s needs and match them with the appropriate level of care—from eviction prevention and diversion to intensive case management and supportive housing,” Ade says.
For example, diversion programs are designed for people who are newly homeless, helping them return to housing quickly and reducing the risk of prolonged homelessness. For those with more complex needs, intensive case management provides longer-term, higher-touch pathways to stability.
- Read more: Preventing family homelessness
Housing services are available through all of Hope Mission’s emergency shelters and work alongside other services like income assistance, ID services, and health services. This integrated approach helps address the multiple challenges people face at once, promoting long-term stability: 89 per cent of people housed in 2025 did not return to shelter.
“Housing isn’t just about a roof—it’s about stability,” Ade says. “That’s why we focus on bringing the right services around people as they move into a home.”
One example of this approach is Immigration Hall in downtown Edmonton, which provides transitional housing for individuals who are medically stable but require ongoing health and social care. The transitional housing team helps guests stabilize and connect to long-term options such as permanent housing or seniors’ living.
“We want people to move into stability, not just cycle back into the shelter system or the emergency department,” Ade says.
After fighting for his sobriety and finding housing, Gayflor is looking forward to his future. Alongside these milestones, he recently received his Canadian citizenship, nearly 19 years after moving to Canada from Liberia.
“I’m working, I’ve got my place, and I’m close with my daughter again,” Gayflor says. “I’m a responsible person again.”
“I’ve got a new life.”