Applications for the Don McBain Memorial Award are now CLOSED as of Friday, April 25 @ 4PM.
Recipients will be contacted at the end of June.
Ontario Aboriginal Housing Services is proud to announce the reopening of the Don McBain Memorial Award for its fifth year, in honour of the late OAHS founder and Executive Director. This award is comprised of (3) $5,000 scholarships that will be distributed annually to (3) Indigenous students from Ontario pursuing their first year of post-secondary studies.
Ontario Aboriginal Housing Services is a leader in the design, development, and delivery of a sustainable and culturally appropriate continuum of housing for Indigenous people in Ontario with the vision that Urban and rural Indigenous communities throughout Ontario have culturally safe and affordable housing. In addition to providing housing services, OAHS supports the communities and people we serve in a variety of other honourable and charitable ways.
Don was the driving force behind the establishment of OAHS, which was incorporated in 1994, and positively impacted the lives of everyone he encountered. Don worked tirelessly for decades carrying out OAHS’s mission and vision. During his tenure, OAHS grew from a developing agent into a multi-faceted Corporation employing over 80 people while owning and administering a portfolio of over 2,300 safe and affordable housing units while designing and delivering both repair and homeownership program opportunities.
We want to continue honouring Don’s legacy through the Don McBain Memorial Award and inspiring the future leaders of our province with this fund.
“Don believed in people. In many different capacities and to many different people, Don was a mentor, supervisor, and coach. Don continually invested his time and energy in people with compassion and passion. The Don McBain Memorial Award is one small way that the OAHS team has come together to tangibly continue Don’s legacy of helping and investing in people.”
– Justin Marchand, CEO of Ontario Aboriginal Housing Services
“The Don McBain Memorial Award has given me the chance to live out my dream and a lifestyle I would not have had without being financially comfortable. Taking away any and all stresses in a time of inflation and financial uncertainty, I am ever so grateful to have been granted this chance of a lifetime.”
– Santina Pallister, Previous Recipient of the Award (2024)
“This funding has aided my quality of life greatly. With reduced stress, I can work my hardest and work toward my future goals. I can afford to visit my family occasionally and not have to work while attending school so I can focus on my grades completely.”
– Emily Shostal, Previous Recipient of the Award (2021)
The Don McBain Memorial Award winners will be determined in the Summer of 2025.
Don McBain, Founder and Former Executive Director of OAHS.
For any questions, please email DonMcBainMemorialAward@oahssc.ca
*Les candidatures ouvriront le 1er mars 2023 !*
Les Services de logement pour les Autochtones de l’Ontario sont fiers d’annoncer la création du prix commémoratif Don McBain, en l’honneur du fondateur et directeur général d’OAHS. Ce prix consiste en trois bourses d’études de 5 000 $ qui seront décernées chaque année à trois étudiant(e)s autochtones de l’Ontario qui entament leur première année d’études postsecondaires.
La mission et la vision des Services de logement pour les Autochtones de l’Ontario (OAHS) consistent à fournir des logements sûrs, durables et abordables aux Autochtones des zones urbaines et rurales de la province de l’Ontario. Outre ces services de logement, OAHS soutient les communautés et les personnes dont la société est au service de diverses autres façons, tant en leur rendant hommage que dans le cadre d’activités de bienfaisance.
Don a été la force motrice de la création d’OAHS, qui a été constituée en société en 1994, et il a eu un impact positif sur la vie de toutes les personnes qu’il a rencontrées. Don a travaillé sans relâche pendant des décennies au service de la mission et la vision d’OAHS. Pendant son mandat, OAHS est passé du statut d’organisme en développement à celui de société à multiples facettes qui emploie plus de 80 personnes, détient et administre un portefeuille de plus de 2 300 unités de logement sûres et abordables, et conçoit et propose des programmes d’entretien, de réparations et d’accession à la propriété.
Le prix commémoratif Don McBain nous permet de continuer à rendre hommage au leg de Don et de contribuer à la naissance de futurs chefs de file dans notre province grâce à ce fonds.
« Don croyait en l’humain. À différents titres et pour différentes personnes, Don a été un mentor, un superviseur et un conseiller. Don a sans relâche investi son temps et son énergie dans les gens en faisant preuve de compassion et d’enthousiasme. Le prix commémoratif Don McBain est un petit geste, une façon pour l’équipe d’OAHS de perpétuer ensemble et de façon tangible le leg de Don : aider les gens et investir en eux. »
– Justin Marchand, Executive Director
Don McBain, fondateur et ancien directeur général d’OAHS
Pour toute question, veuillez envoyer un courriel à l’adresse DonMcBainMemorialAward@oahssc.ca