The History of The Anawim Companions Society

The story of The Anawim Companions Society began in the early 1980s with a simple but profound question:

How do we truly help people move beyond homelessness, rather than simply survive it?

A small group of volunteers at St. Andrew’s Soup Kitchen in Victoria had spent years listening to people experiencing homelessness. They saw that while emergency services could meet immediate needs, poverty was often accompanied by isolation, trauma, addiction, broken relationships, and a profound loss of hope.

They believed there had to be another way — one rooted in companionship, dignity, community, and hope.

They chose the name Anawim, a Hebrew word (עֲנָוִים, ʿănāwîm) often translated as “the poor,” but with a much richer meaning: the humble, the afflicted, and those who maintain hope and dignity through hardship.

The name also reflected how Anawim would serve: not as benefactors helping from above, but as companions walking alongside one another.

1987 — The Beginning

In 1987, The Anawim Companions Society was formally incorporated as a charitable organization.

Its earliest work centred around volunteers serving meals and building relationships with members of Victoria’s street community. What began with food quickly revealed a deeper need — for safety, friendship, dignity, and a place to belong.

The philosophy was simple:

People helping people.

1991 — A Home of Its Own

In 1991, with support from churches, businesses, foundations, and individual donors, Anawim purchased a modest house at 973 Caledonia Avenue.

Known as the Anawim Day Program, the small house was not initially a residence. It was an entirely volunteer-led, substance-free drop-in where donated food was prepared and served, practical support was offered, and people who often had nowhere else to go could find safety, friendship, and community.

There were no paid staff. Volunteers cooked meals, welcomed guests, maintained the house, raised funds, and walked alongside those who came through the door.

1994 — Growing to Meet the Need

As demand grew, Anawim House underwent a major expansion, creating a nine-bedroom residence and allowing the Society to begin providing supportive housing alongside its community Day Program.

Over the years, Anawim evolved from an entirely volunteer-run organization to include professional staff, support workers, case management, and clinical counselling. Yet volunteers remain fundamental to who we are and continue to make up the majority of the Anawim team.

2022–2023 — Susan’s Place

For many years, Anawim dreamed of extending its family-style supportive housing model to women.

That dream became reality with the creation of Susan’s Place, made possible through the extraordinary generosity of the Clint and Carole Forster Foundation and designed and built by Aryze Developments.

Susan’s Place welcomed its first residents in 2023, providing a safe, substance-free home for women rebuilding lives affected by homelessness, addiction, trauma, poverty, and intimate partner violence.

Like Anawim House, Susan’s Place is intentionally a home, not an institution — a place where stability, relationships, accountability, and belonging create the foundation for lasting change.

Anawim Today

Nearly four decades later, Anawim provides supportive housing for men and women alongside Victoria’s only substance-free community drop-in program, providing thousands of meals, showers, loads of laundry, clothing-room visits, and other essential supports every year.

Much has changed since those first volunteers began serving meals. What has not changed is the belief at the heart of Anawim:

People are more than the circumstances that brought them through our doors.

Every meal shared, every conversation, every safe bed, and every relationship built is an opportunity to restore dignity, create belonging, and help someone move toward greater stability and independence.

What began with a handful of volunteers has grown into a community of residents, guests, staff, volunteers, donors, and supporters — all continuing the vision that started Anawim nearly forty years ago.

People helping people.