Family Day invites us to slow down and reflect on the people and places that help us feel grounded. In Calgary, where winter can feel long and isolating, family and community play an especially important role in helping people stay connected, supported and hopeful. Family can mean parents and children, chosen family, neighbours, or the networks we build through care and shared responsibility. What matters most is knowing you are not facing life’s challenges alone.
Family First and Foremost
At Inn from the Cold, family is at the centre of everything we do. Each day, we work alongside families experiencing housing instability, supporting them through moments of uncertainty while helping them move toward safety, stability and a sense of belonging.
The past year has been a reminder of just how great the need is in our city. In 2024/25, 1,908 families reached out to Inn from the Cold for support. While we directly served 239 families, representing 894 family members and 513 children and youth, many others were connected to community resources or guided toward other supports. Every call, conversation and referral reflects a family doing their best to navigate an incredibly difficult housing landscape in Calgary.
Expanding Support
Supporting families means more than providing a place to stay. Housing instability can disrupt every part of family life, from children’s routines and schooling to parents’ mental health and employment. Keeping families together and supporting their overall wellbeing requires thoughtful, coordinated care.
Over the past year, we strengthened that care by expanding mental health supports at The Inn. During the 2024-25 fiscal year, a new Mental Health Clinician role was added to the Health and Wellness team. This position provides individual and group counselling to families staying at The Inn, with a focus on life skills, social-emotional wellbeing and family wellness. For many families, these supports would otherwise be unaffordable or inaccessible. Increasing access to mental health care helps families process stress and trauma, build resilience and move forward with greater confidence.
Our commitment to families also extends beyond our own programs. Inn from the Cold continues to support community-based research that deepens understanding of housing challenges and informs long-term solutions. Last year, we contributed to several important projects, including Unaddressed and A Safe and Affordable Place to Call Home.
Unaddressed is a multi-year partnership with The Women’s Centre of Calgary, YW Calgary, Vibrant Communities Calgary, Miskanawah, and the Women’s National Housing and Homelessness Network. The project examines hidden homelessness through a gender-equality lens, shedding light on experiences that are often overlooked. A Safe and Affordable Place to Call Home is a multidisciplinary, longitudinal analysis of housing outcomes connected to Canada’s National Housing Strategy. Together, these projects help ensure the voices and experiences of families are reflected in policy conversations and future planning.
Community and Family
Family Day is also a reminder that community can be family. Not everyone has a traditional support network to rely on, but connection can be found in neighbours, coworkers, service providers and community organizations. When Calgarians come together with care and compassion, we create a stronger safety net for families across our city.
This Family Day, we invite you to reflect on the role family and community play in your own life, and how you might extend that sense of belonging to others. Whether through advocacy, volunteering, donating or simply checking in on someone who may be struggling, small actions can make a meaningful difference.
At Inn from the Cold, we believe every family deserves the opportunity to feel safe, supported and at home. As we celebrate Family Day, we remain committed to walking alongside families in Calgary and working toward a city where everyone has a place to belong.
Happy Family Day from all of us at Inn from the Cold.
