This month we are excited to shine the spotlight on CFOC-Doors of Compassion, the service provider operating the new shelter at 924/928 Sydenham Road.

Our spotlight series features a local service provider each month to highlight how they contribute to improving housing outcomes in our community and ways residents can provide support. Each spotlight is posted to the Emergency Housing Responses Get Involved page and shared with subscribers.

CFOC–Doors of Compassion

928 Sydenham Road Emergency Shelter, Kingston

1. Who they are

No single organization solves homelessness. CFOC–Doors of Compassion opened the 30-bed low-barrier emergency shelter at 928 Sydenham Road in February 2026, and runs it in close coordination with the City of Kingston, local service providers, and the surrounding neighbourhood.

The shelter offers 30 beds for adults, with up to 15 additional beds available during extreme weather. It operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, with trained, trauma-informed staff on site at all times.

Doors of Compassion is the community response division of Christian Faith Outreach Centre, a registered charity that has operated in Ontario since 1988. In Durham Region it is the largest shelter provider, running three housing-focused shelters alongside housing, peer support, and outreach programs.

The team takes part in the Community Liaison Committee each month, provides neighbourhood updates, and hosted open-house tours prior to opening. Transparency, shared problem-solving, and safety-first operations are how they approach that work.

Their model rests on a simple idea: homelessness is a circumstance, not an identity. Strong communities are built through compassion, accountability, and collaboration.

2. Who they serve

Doors of Compassion serves adults 18 and over, including couples, who are experiencing homelessness in Kingston. That includes people sleeping outside, staying in precarious or temporary housing, or in crisis. Between opening in February and the end of July, 108 people stayed at 928 Sydenham Road. The shelter has run at 99 per cent occupancy since it opened.

The shelter is low-barrier. People are not screened out because of their income, housing history, mental health, or substance use, and sobriety is not a condition of getting a bed.

Low-barrier does not mean anything goes. Substance use is not permitted on the property. Staff work from a harm reduction approach: they meet people where they are, they are trained in overdose response and de-escalation, and they connect people to treatment or detox when someone is ready. There is a nightly curfew from 10:00 pm to 7:00 am, and everyone staying at the shelter works toward a housing goal with staff. People need to be self-sufficient with daily care tasks.

The shelter is dog-friendly. For many people, a pet is the reason they will not come inside, and that should not be the thing that keeps someone on the street.

Everyone who stays receives a bed, three meals a day, showers and washroom facilities, laundry access, and storage for personal belongings.

A Patron Relations Advocate works with each person one-to-one on identification, income assistance, health connections, rental applications, landlord navigation, and housing viewings. Support does not end at the door. Staff stay connected after someone moves out, to help them keep the housing they found.

The goal is not only a safe place to sleep tonight. It is a path to housing that holds.

3. Accomplishments and early impact

Since February, the shelter has moved from a phased intake to consistent 24/7 operations, running at full capacity with a stable, trained team.

Fourteen people have moved from 928 Sydenham Road into housing. Eleven of those placements were made directly by Doors of Compassion, into transitional housing, private rentals, or reunification with family, and the rest were made alongside partner agencies. Seven more people have connected to treatment or detox. Others have started new jobs or returned to their education.

People staying at the shelter are contributing to the neighbourhood too, through regular community clean-ups and growing connections with nearby organizations.

Because the shelter is still in its first year, the most meaningful milestone is the plainest one. A shelter that did not exist in Kingston a year ago is now open, operating safely, and providing 30 people a night with warmth, meals, and support toward housing.

How to help

In-kind donations of hygiene products, clothing, and non-perishable food are welcome. Contact the shelter to arrange a drop-off. Volunteer opportunities at 928 Sydenham Road are in development, and the team is glad to hear from anyone who wants to get involved.

General and community inquiries: info.doc928@cfoc.ca | 613-483-6732

Shelter intake, 8:00 am to 11:00 pm: doc928@cfoc.ca | 613-483-6771

Online: doorsofcompassion.ca/kingston