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“East Scarborough Storefront: Binding a community together” – The Toronto Star, October 1, 2012
Residents at the Storefront
by: Paul Gallant
When Roshni Aneja, her husband and new baby moved from New Delhi, India, to Scarborough in 2005, she wasn’t sure how they’d find work, Canadianize their skills or make friends. Soon after their arrival, Aneja discovered the East Scarborough Storefront’s resource centre and job-counselling services.
She visited almost every day.
“My eldest son knows almost all the staff there,” says Aneja. “I’d sit down to use the computers to get my paperwork done and they would always find ways to occupy him.”
At the suggestion of staff, she signed up for a cooking class for newcomers, which was then offered at Storefront by the service organization Access Alliance http://accessalliance.ca/services/nutrition/newcomers, where Aneja connected with other new Canadians by preparing meals with them.
Storefront helped her change careers from computers to social work, and she made many friends there.
Although she and her family moved out of the Kingston-Galloway neighbourhood for a few years, they bought a house there last year and moved back.
“You don’t stand out; you blend in. People recognize you and say ‘Hi,’” says Aneja, who now has three kids, ages 8, 6 and 4.
Although many community centres offer one-stop shopping for government and non-profit-agency services, Storefront has captured the imagination of residents by going a step further.
View the full article on the Toronto Star website.
