What we do
The Youth Services Bureau (YSB) is one of the largest and longest serving youth agencies in Ottawa, serving more than 3,000 youth each month in support of their wellbeing.
YSB runs two emergency youth shelters and four apartment buildings, offers a range of free youth mental health services, provides youth employment support, as well as programs for youth in conflict with the law. Central to YSB’s work has been ensuring we have youth voices advising us, allowing us to continually adapt to serving the needs of young people and their families.
Regardless of the service that our clients are accessing, we work to meet youth where they are at, physically, mentally, and logistically. These past few years have been disruptive and difficult for everyone, and the need for our services has never been greater.
YSB staff – a group of more than 325 full and part-time professionals working from 20 locations – live the ethos of supporting youth regardless of where they live, what they look like, or whom they love. YSB’s work is broad and deep, serving youth of all ethnicities, faiths, and genders.
How you can help
Every young person has their own story. While each path is different, they all lead to a bright future, with your help. Donations ensure YSB’s mental health services – including crisis phone and chat services, Walk-In clinics and youth and family counselling – are available free of charge, and that young people do not have to endure long wait lists while they are suffering.
One of the major stressors for young people is safe, stable housing. Each year, more than 1400 youth find themselves homeless often due to conflict at home, with upwards of 40 per cent of those youth being part of the LGBTQ2S+ community. At YSB, they are welcomed into a supportive environment at its two shelters and four long-term housing buildings, where housing, health, and a sense of community are top priorities.
Support from our corporate and community partners is not only life changing, it’s often life saving. Every young person deserves to feel seen, heard and cared for and that’s the commitment YSB staff make each and every day, with each and every youth who reaches out for support.
Funding Priorities
The YSB Foundation’s fundraising priorities are focused on several major challenges for youth in our community: mental wellness, affordable housing, employment and justice support. YSB provides services for youth struggling with mental health challenges as well as support for their families.
YSB is raising much-needed funds to ensure young people can access our 24/7 Crisis Phone Line & 24/7 Crisis Chat Service, our Youth Mental Health Walk-In & Virtual Clinics, our mobile crisis team and more. As well, we seek support for our two dedicated youth shelters, four long-term housing buildings, employment programs, and youth justice and trades training centre.
Pictured: Local Home Depot store managers and associates conduct backyard makeover at one of YSB’s long-term housing buildings.
Events + fundraising
RISE & THRIVE: Together, We’ve Got This!
The YSB Foundation’s fundraising breakfast – the inaugural event having taken place in October 2023 – showcases YSB’s work with young people and their families and celebrates the community that invests in that work. Sponsorships and tables are available for this annual event.
Stay Up Ottawa
YSB welcomes workplace, family, and community teams to participate in its 11th annual bilingual Stay Up Ottawa event, focused on 5 days and 5 ways to help end youth homelessness.
The event offers an opportunity to raise awareness about homelessness, learn about YSB’s services and generate funds to ensure homeless youth can be housed and cared for at YSB’s shelters and long-term housing buildings.
While participants are creative about how they carry out the event, it is not intended to emulate the experiences of those who are experiencing homelessness in our city.
Mind Matters
YSB’s Mind Matters youth mental health speakers’ series provides practical information and guidance to parents, family members, educators, and the community. The series features youth, parents and YSB counsellors sharing their experiences, learnings and expertise.
Mind Matters is about sharing strategies to best support young people in our lives who are experiencing mental health issues, and highlights YSB’s range of youth mental health services available – at no cost – to youth 12 and older and their families.
biggest success
YSB is a story of a community coming together and an organization adapting through the years to the needs of youth. Our work is successful when our clients get the support they need, when they need it. It’s about youth in our community learning life skills, finding shelter, getting jobs, returning to school, choosing a better path, and feeling hopeful about their future and their role in their community.
YSB staff are deeply committed to the young people they serve. Nothing they do happens without the investment of our partners, the collaboration with other local agencies, and the support of our community.
Ottawa’s Young People. Their Future Is Everybody’s Business.
Digital fundraising campaigns feature the theme of The Power of One – illustrating that every single donor and every one donation helps a young person move forward through a challenging time.
Get in touch:
2675 Queensview Drive
Ottawa, ON
K2B 8K2
www.ysb.ca
pmurphy@ysb.ca
Year founded: 1960
Total revenue for last fiscal year: $32,381,189
Twitter: @ysb_bsj
Facebook: @ysb.bsj
Instagram : @ysb.bsj
LinkedIn:
/youth-services-bureau-of-ottawa/about/
Patti Murphy, Executive Director, YSB Foundation
Isabelle Perreault, Board Chair, YSB Foundation, President & Founder, Differly
BOARD MEMBERS
- Rebecca Murray, Vice Chair, Carleton University
- Scott Lawrence, HealthCraft Products Inc.
- Martin Sampson, Canadian Parks and Recreation Association
- Christopher Rheaume, Ottawa Police Service
- Chris White, Canadian Meat Council
- Maria McRae, Community Advocate, Lawyer
- Balwinderjit Singh Kapoor, MDS Aero Support Corporation
- Jennifer Stewart, Syntax Strategic
- Geoff Publow, Myers Automotive Group
- Erika Falconer, RBC
- Shawn Hamilton, Proveras Commercial Reality
- Christine Leadman, Centretown BIA
- Greg Kung, GK Consulting/Lanark County Paramedic Service
TOP FUNDING SOURCES
Government funding: 91%
Corporate donations: 3%
Other charities: 1%
Individual donations: 3%
Other sources: 2%
Patti Murphy, YSB Foundation
pmurphy@ysb.ca and 613-729-0577 ext. 50262
