Two key housing advocates have passed away recently - Bonnie Briggs and Nick Volk.
Bonnie was well know for founding the Toronto Homelessness memorial (The City only committed to officially tracking homeless deaths in 2017) in addition to her work with the Toronto Disaster Relief Committee, the ODSP Action Group, ACORN, the Tiny Houses movement, and many other aghencies. She was a PARC amassador, a poet, a drummer and was a long standing member of Housing Action Now, a network of housing activists along with the FMTA.
Nick was also a part of HAN and a prominent advocate for more supportive housing for tenants in the City. He created Vincent Paul Family Homes Corporation, culminating in the opening of Gower Park Place in 1994, a 164-unit mixed-income housing development. Nick was also a tireless champion of both Habitat for Humanity and the families it served. Under Nick's leadership on the Board of Directors, Habitat Toronto significantly increased its capacity to build homes for more families.
There was rarely a housing or tenant meeting in Toronto that didn't involve these two advocates.
They will be missed, but their work and impact on the City will not be forgotten.