New program helps Edmonton family find a place to call home after year of homelessness

It has always been Roy Bourke’s dream to have a family—and through all the hardships, that dream stayed alive.

Roy, his partner Debby Sayers, and their son Leon Bourke have been together for years. But for more than a year, the family lived without a home after they were evicted from the trailer they had been renting.

“We’re not a perfect family—like, everybody has ups and downs,” said Roy.

“We’re just a functional family, like everybody else,” added Debby.

Debby said it was the strength of their bond that helped them through the toughest moments.

“It was heartbreaking,” she said. “But I knew that the three of us together were a strong family unit.”

Roy said they lost not just their home, but many irreplaceable belongings.

“They threw away half of our stuff that we’ll never see again,” he said. “Like my dad’s stuff. Her mother’s stuff—she’s been dead for 30 years. The stuff was just thrown in the dump like garbage. We lost our storage on top of that, and everything just went downhill.”

The Bourke family is one of 18 families who’ve benefited from a new pilot program supported by the Alberta government and delivered by Hope Mission, a social services organization in Edmonton.

The program provides temporary hotel accommodations and financial support to families experiencing homelessness, helping them transition into permanent housing.

“For individuals, there are often shelter options,” said Tim Pasma, Hope Mission’s Director of Programs. “But families with children face different circumstances. It may be more appropriate to place them temporarily in a hotel—for safety reasons and to meet the specific needs of a family.”

The goal, Pasma said, is to house three to five families per month. Most participants are newcomers, but all are families in urgent need. The hotel stay typically lasts up to two weeks, depending on the situation.

“We are seeing more people accessing shelter than ever before,” Pasma said. “That’s concerning. But we’re excited to have programs like this that we can partner with the province on, to support some of those people.”

For Roy and Debby, the support has changed everything. Their son Leon finally has a space of his own—and for the first time in over a year, they have a place to call home.

“I came home one day and I said, ‘Jesus, it’s nice to come home to your own place,’” Roy said.

“And we don’t have to cook on a hot plate in a microwave anymore,” Debby added.

“I get to do my own stuff,” said their son Leon. “It’s refreshing.”

Currently, the program is only available in Edmonton, but Pasma said there’s hope it could expand to Calgary in the future.