Madison Receives $300,000 from the United Way to Support Newcomers / Refugees

Madison Receives $300,000 from the United Way to Support Newcomers / Refugees

Madison is extremely pleased to announce that it was successful in its application for the United Way Greater Toronto’s Community Services Sector (CSS) Program Funding. Madison’s Recovery during Immigration and Settlement (RISE) will receive $300,000 for three years ($100,000/year) and we have also become a United Way partner agency. Madison is one of 29 new agencies to receive funding to assist the United Way in making services accessible to those who need them the most and close to where they live.

Madison’s RISE program has been operating for seven years and provides support for both mental health and settlement needs for newcomers and refugees. All RISE clients come from war-torn countries where they have experienced significant trauma and often –persecution. RISE provides a range of community-based, holistic services to address mental and settlement challenges for newcomers and refugees. These include one-on-one case management, group orientation sessions, peer support, social events and recreational activities. Although RISE has received the bulk of its funding through Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), Madison has been actively seeking funding from other sources to expand and enhance the RISE program to better meet the ever growing need for its services.

A significant aspect of accessibility is language. RISE offers services in English, Arabic, Farsi, and Amharic languages. By providing client services in their first language, Madison is able to meaningfully connect with clients who have experienced significant distress and work with them to address their mental health and settlement challenges. This work is done in the context of partnership and with referrals from other organizations such as COSTI Immigrant Services, the Canadian Centre for Victims of Torture, Working Women, and Thorncliffe Neighbourhood Office – again meeting clients close to where they live. Partnerships also highlight the need within communities- one identified need is that of services to support the influx of Syrian, Iraqi and other Arabic-speaking refugees. Because of this, Madison sought United Way funding to expand mental health case management services for the newcomer/refugee, Arabic-speaking population.

The new funding from the United Way enables Madison to add an additional Arabic-speaking mental health case manager to the RISE program staff team which will increase the program’s capacity to support the continued influx of Syrian, Iraqi, and other Arabic-speaking refugees. The funding also supports a part-time evaluator who will develop and implement a comprehensive plan that will support, expand and improve the quality of the RISE program; better serving newcomers/refugees, partners and the larger community.
Madison’s Board, staff and RISE Program clients (current and future) thank the United Way for its financial support for this important and critically needed program.

We are also very proud to now be a United Way partner agency!

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