Posted On: February 9, 2026, Posted By: Simon Martin, YorRegion.com, Original Article.
“I lost everything two years ago. I ended up sleeping in my car,” Habib said to the assembled crowd at Blue Door’s Construct facility in Aurora.
He didn’t even enough rent to pay for a bachelor apartment. After 3.5 months of living in his car, Habib got in touch with Blue Door and everything changed.
“I mean free meals, nice room, nice service,” he said. “They didn’t just save my life, but they brought my dignity back. I’m part of the community again.”
Habib’s story is not uncommon among senior men in Canada.
According to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, 28 per cent of senior-led households in Canada are in housing need. Habib is in Blue Door’s transitional housing program.
“I lost everything, but, right now, I feel grateful to have a roof over my head,” he said.
The crowd was gathered at the facility Feb. 5 to celebrate the $87,300 Blue Door received from the Ontario Trillium Foundation in 2025. The money went to essential renovations happening at Forward, Blue Door’s transitional house program for senior men.
Blue Door’s Forward program serves as a bridge for at-risk senior men, providing supportive transitional housing alongside wraparound services that help residents regain stability. Forward directly supports senior men facing multiple barriers to stable housing, including socio-economic challenges, physical limitations and age-related discrimination.
“At Blue Door, we created Forward because every senior deserves to age with security and respect in their community. Forward is more than housing, it is an anchor of stability and belonging,” Blue Door interim CEO Emmy Kelly said.
She said the support from OTF allows Blue Door to be better equipped to ensure the safety and accessibility of Forward.
The OTF invested nearly $105 million in 732 community projects last year.