We provide a wide range of confidential services for friends of the House Of Blessing. Our goal is to encourage, strengthen, and love every client we meet. Here are some of the ways we care for our clients.

The House of Blessing is thankful to the many volunteers, staff members, and donors for providing the much-needed resources to support the following services. Without the abundant and tireless effort of all these supporters, we couldn’t help the number of people we do today. These services have been designed with care to provide the basic needs of food, clothing, and furniture for the needy and working poor of our community.

Most of the clients that use the Food Bank are referred to us through local agencies. However, the food bank at the House of Blessing is open to anyone in need under the poverty line. Clients can come in once a month for a balanced hamper of emergency food containing milk, bread, canned goods, juice, pasta, sauce, cereal, and other goodies. Because we have a walk-in freezer and fridge, we are also able to provide frozen meat, fresh fruit, and vegetables when available. Detergent, cleaning products, and toiletries when available, are also supplied upon request.

As a member of the Ontario Association of Food Banks we receive certain items such as milk and frozen meats when available. Ontario Dairy Farmers graciously donate milk biweekly. We’d also like to thank Stratford General Hospital for the assortment of prepared foods they give to our food bank.

The House of Blessing supplies clients’ basic need for clothing through the Clothing Cupboard program. Clients can come to the House of Blessing and get clothes for themselves at no cost. We have attire for all ages, both male and female. The Clothing Cupboard also carries other necessities required to set up a household such as linens, dishes, pots, and pans.

We also have a selection of formal attire available for clients to borrow for special events such as court appearances, weddings, proms, and other important occasions.

The need for furniture is also met for our clients. A wide assortment of furniture is available to anyone who may qualify. Some appliances may also be supplied depending on availability. Clients may submit requests for furniture on weekdays by calling us at (519) 273-3433.

Home with a Heart

The art of homemaking is the ability to make the home a special place for the family. This unique program offers a hands-on approach to learning, assisted by a step-by-step 12-week plan that is easy to understand and fun to apply. It's truly life changing. For registration or information please call (519) 273-34330

The sooner children develop a healthy appetite for reading, t11he better they will be able to perform and excel in their schooling. This eight week program has been designed for toddlers and preschool children and will include visits to the Stratford Public Library and the Perth Early Years Centre.The House of Blessing will also give free gift books to all participants. If you have a child who'd like to get an early start in literacy, give us a call!

This program helps women recognize their strengths, identify their goals, and prepare them for their futures. Self-esteem and a positive attitude are established as participants learn new skills and support each other through workshops designed to improve their lifestyles. These workshops will include guidance in assertiveness, personal health, nutrition, money management, child management, self advocacy, legal rights, coping with crisis, using community resources, and employment.

Owning assets gives people a stake in the future; a reason to save, to invest their time, dreams, effort, and resources in creating a future for themselves and their children. Individual Development Accounts are dedicated savings accounts that can only be used for purchasing a first home, education or job training expenses, or starting a small business. These accounts will be held at local financial institutions, and will be managed by the House of Blessing.

The House of Blessing is proud to be part of the thINK FOOD program. We collect empty ink cartridges from printers and send them to a facility to be reused. The money received from the cartridges then goes to buying food for our food bank. Last year, we made over $1000 from this important program. If you would like to donate your used ink cartridges, we have a drop-off box located in our reception area. For more information on this program click on the thINK FOOD logo to visit their web site!

As part of the Phones for FOOD program, we have a drop-off box in our reception area where we'll gladly accept your old cell phones. The cell phones collected will be recycled and the money earned will all go towards purchasing food for our food bank. For more information on this program click on the Phones for FOOD logo to visit their web site!

We believe that going back to school each year is an important event. New clothes and shoes for the first day back at school help to build a child’s self-esteem and makes learning a more positive experience. The House of Blessing is proud to help in this important program that provides needy children with a new outfit, shoes, and school supplies for their first day of the school year. If you’d like to sponsor a child or get more information on this rewarding program call or email us.

The holidays are an important and joyous time. Providing Christmas Hampers to those in need helps others have a happy and plentiful holiday. The House of Blessing is glad to collaborate with Kiwanis to help provide hampers so those in need can celebrate this special time in our community. If you are in need of a Christmas hamper, call us so we can submit your name.

The House of Blessing has set aside a portion of its property where clients without access to land can grow their own food in this unique and rewarding program. This program allows participants to stretch their resources by growing their own food, helps develop new skills, and helps foster positive relationships with the community surrounding the garden. A small cost of $10 buys a 4 ft by 16 ft garden bed where clients can plant their seeds and reap their own harvests. Some gardening tools are available for use.

Call Ruth Seyffert at 273-7577 if interested.

The 3 C's - Caring, Co-operation and Communication.

This club for kids is an outreach program that provides children in the community a safe and fun program of crafts, games, and devotionals. Meetings are held on Saturday evenings. These meetings also provide single parents with a free and safe environment for their children while they take a deserved break. For more information about this program, or to sign-up your child, call Eva Bailey at 273-2860.

For more information on any of these programs, please don’t hesitate to contact us!

On top of providing for our clients' basic needs through our food bank, clothing cupboard, and our furniture bank, we also have a long list of other agencies and individuals a client may need. This list includes doctors, community services agencies, health organizations, and many more. Check our links page to see some of the many agencies with whom we cooperate.

On some occasions, our clients have experienced difficulty in making the right choices with their financial decisions. A client can sit down with our volunteers, one-to-one, and go through their past, present, and future financial choices to learn how to be the most effective with their money.

If a client ever needs a shoulder, we are always there to provide one. We care about every one of our clients and understand that each individual’s needs, emotions, and situations are unique to them. We are always here to listen and comfort.

If a client seeks guidance and spiritual support, we are willing to meet with them one-on-one at their request.

One of the most joyous and most troubling times in a woman’s life is pregnancy. From conception to early motherhood, important life-altering decisions must be made. The Pregnancy Care Centre is here to support, educate, and provide a multitude of resources for the women and men of our community in a caring, safe, and confidential environment.

The pregnancy centre provides the following free services:

1. Pregnancy tests
• The pregnancy tests provided in our centre are identical to the tests used by hospitals and physicians’ offices
• These tests are more accurate and easier to perform


2. Education, videos, and literature
• Pregnancy
• Prenatal development and care
• Child birth and child care
• Adoption
• Abstinence
• Date rape
• Sexually transmitted diseases
• Miscarriage
• Post-abortion
• Budgeting and decision making


3. Emotional support and encouragement
• Our volunteers are ready and willing to provide confidential one-on-one support for pregnancy, adoption, parenting, and grief (post-abortion and miscarriage)


4. Referrals for help in our community
• We have a vast library of other support services, organizations, agencies, and caring individuals, all who are ready to provide help in our community


5. Maternity clothes, baby clothes, furnishings, diapers, and formula
• All of our resources are free for clients
• We provide layettes to all new mothers

Trained volunteers at the Pregnancy Care Centre are all willing to spend the time to support and answer any questions a client may have. Because this is such a delicate time in a client’s life, a great deal of one-on-one time is available for them. We thoroughly care about every one of our clients and recognize they all have different lives, needs, and concerns.