SteppingStoneHfx

Stepping Stone was founded in 1987 and is the only organization in the Maritimes that deals specifically with street life and sex work from a harm reduction model. Our offices and drop-in centre are located in a modest, non-residential house, where many of our staff members are former sex-workers. Our support is crucial to the well-being of hundreds of female, male and transgender sex workers, and we do this in several key ways.

We Support Choice: Stepping Stone believes that all individuals have the right to self-determination. We do not interfere with or attempt to stop their work; rather, we assist them in making their life choices as safe and positive as possible.

We Protect: The Stepping Stone house is a safe-haven from the street, and hub of activity. Much more than a place to shower and have a nutritious snack, the house hosts regular vistas from many community partners including; community and mental health nurses, legal aid, and Avalon. We are a one-stop shop for access to services such as growth activities; and computer access and educational opportunities. The house is a place where sex workers meet and form a community; the house is also a home.

We Advocate: Our trained staff provide advocacy through a variety of ways such as court support, housing support (to locate maintain stable and adequate housing), building community relation, and through harm reduction.

We Reach Out: Four evenings a week our Street Outreach Program connects with our clients on the stroll as well as those working out of private houses. Outreach allows us to visit our clients on the job, and ensure that they are safe and have the supplies they need to remain that way. We provide condoms, food and drinks, Bad Tricks Lists, crisis intervention, and referrals to in-house staff for further aid. Outreach workers forge friendly and trusted relationships with street-based sex workers who may otherwise be isolated from they communities.

http://steppingstonens.ca

32

Halifax, NS

SteppingStoneHfx