Our Impact
Together, we help turn housing into loving homes
From the many reasons why a furniture bank is a valuable resource to our local community the most important is the transformative experience of those facing poverty and the task of rebuilding their lives. Gifting unwanted furniture and household goods helps to build confidence and hope to families who are often going through very uncertain and unpredictable times.
We have a problem in Canada
In Canada, nearly 5 million people live in poverty – that’s approximately 2 million families.
Over half a million Canadian households live in social or affordable housing, with a waitlist of nearly 300,000. When people living in poverty do find housing, they often have no beds to sleep on, places to sit, desks to study at, or pots and pans to cook with.
Our research shows each person moving into an empty apartment requires a minimum of $8,000 in available funds to turn empty housing into a furnished established home.
We're making a difference
When agency caseworkers were asked about the impact of Furniture Banks, the top social impacts for Furniture Bank beneficiary families were:
- Restoring hope in the future (83%)
- Improving self-esteem (78%)
- Improving self-confidence (72%)
- Creating family stability (72%)
So far...
families helped in our community.
items delivered to those in need.
tonnes of furniture diverted from landfills.
Programs & Projects
Furniture Bank and Service Program
Oyate Tipi community members are referred by one of 22 community based partner agencies including residential facilities, crisis shelters, and other heath agencies. In addition to furniture we also help with other household goods such as kitchen supplies.
Volunteer and Intern Program
Oyate Tipi operates a volunteer program for past clients, community members, and students in need of developing new skills or enhancing existing ones. The purpose is to help create better opportunities to those struggling to find work and those training for careers in social work.
Our Social Enterprises
Part of our mandate is to make Oyate Tipi more self sufficient. To help reach this goal we are launching two new social enterprises. The first is our furniture removal service.
The second is our fee for service heat treatment and moving services.
Covid 19 and The PPE Project
Oyate Tipi partnered with the Emergency Community Support Fund to prepare 900 baskets of cleaning supplies and personal protective equipment, which we distributed to area residents via our community partners.
The buckets include essential COVID-19 health and safety information, disinfectants and sanitizers, reusable face masks, and cleaning tools, among other things.
Oyate Tipi and The Environment
Oyate Tipi diverts over 150 tonnes of items every year from landfills with our furniture bank program. In addition, we also see that the items we don’t use are treated responsibly as well. Obsolete electronics, reclaimed metals such a steel and aluminum are reclaimed and sent to the appropriate facilities.
Even furniture items that are not suitable for our regular program are made available to community members that may not qualify for our main programs.
“Everything has a value to the right person.”
Bedbug Prevention Program
We heat treat all our donated items to prevent the spread of bedbugs in Winnipeg. We accomplish this with our two bedbug eradication chambers which heat up to 150 degrees. This provides a chemical free method of ensuring bedbugs are stopped “dead” in their tracks!
Words from the people we helped
With a furnished home my life has stability now. My self-confidence has grown and this has had a great impact in my professional and personal growth.
Most of our families do not have access to furniture due to circumstances beyond their control and if it wasn’t for Furniture Bank they would not be able to resettle back into the community. This is a critical service for the most vulnerable in our society creating conditions for the good mental and physical health of our families.
Oyate tipi is amazing!
They have their own bed bug heat treatment so everything is precautionary treated. The people who work there are amazing! I love this place so much. They furnished my entire apartment.
Hire us to remove your furniture
By hiring us for your furniture removal needs, you:
- Pay NO HST
- Receive a charitable tax receipt
- Avoid landfills and save the environment
- Competitive rates with bigger trucks - Get more in a single trip!
- Be a hero and help someone in need!
The funds collected from the fees we charge for our removal services go back into the organization to support our mission of ending furniture poverty. These fees allow us to put our trucks on the road, maintain our warehouse space, and provide gently used furniture to families in need.
