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A visionary woman, an insider look at the Stonegate Community Health Care Center
- Sara Plaw
- Mar 6, 2020
- 2 min read
Updated: Jan 22, 2024
Who: Bev Leaver: is the current Executive Director of Stonegate Community Health Centre. She is a Community Advocate and a past member of the feminist collective that founded Jessie's Centre for teenage parents.
I had the opportunity to talk to Bev Leaver and tour the beautifully renovated
Stonegate Community Centre.
The center serves over 5000 people. They are mostly, what Bev calls, Toronto's working poor, including new immigrants, the elderly, people living with dementia, and children living in poverty. Clients are often working two or three part-time jobs to make ends meet.
Stonegate is a full-service center. It provides; a medical clinic, free dental care, therapy, podiatry, physical therapy, and dozens of other programs. There is a big emphasis on food security and a popular cooking program. The early years program is especially important because a large number of children in the area are living in poverty. Stonegate's program provides these children with healthy food, language skills, and kindergarten preparation.
Stonegate Centre reinforces the management theory of Mary Parker Follett.
The center is a proponent of the power of social prescribing and a holistic approach to healthcare. Among success stories are ones that include clients who become employees at the center.
The center promotes empowering the individual through skill development and social connection.
Bev oversaw the construction of the new space. It was a priority to make the space aesthetically beautiful so clients and staff accessing the center would have an uplifting and positive experience. In the attached article, Chiropodist Richar Blasczak says, “In all honesty, I think everybody’s moods have been elevated since we moved in here." he says “Everybody’s loving the space – especially our longtime clients, who feel proud to come here.”
Mary Parker Follett (an early business expert written about in another post) would be thrilled to see this community center in action. Stonegate Center believes that strong community connection is the most important thing for helping people live a long and healthy life. They treat each individual with dignity and have seen people thrive and flourish when they are given what they need. Community Health Care Centres like Stonegate Centre which focuses on health instead of sickness, keep people out of the Emergency Department. These centers don't only make good human sense but financial sense as well.
Do you have other examples of companies that do this well? In your opinion, is there a business case for applying these ideas?
Article about Stonegate Centre:
Sara Plaw is a Toronto-based Content Creator.
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