Establishing Home
The Way to Home
February 2024, the Act Five staff and board gathered in the prayer room hosted by the Greater Ontario House of Prayer (GOHOP) here in Hamilton. With GOHOP partners joining our circle, we moved through a time of prayer to grieve, pray and let go of Act Five’s home at 75 Blake St.
We had walked a road with the owner of this home – a man who purchased the home for Act Five’s use prior to its first program year in 2019 – but could not come to a reasonable agreement to be able to purchase the home. Between what an appraisal deemed as the value of the home and the asking price of the owner lay a $1 million difference.
The lack of being able to purchase the home meant we could not viably renovate the space and could not afford to continue under our current rental agreement. It was clear that the decision was to actively pursue a new home for Act Five. Staff members continued to pray, wait and plead with God for a way to open at Blake St, but the work began to move on and move out.
Fast forward 9 months. December 2024. Act Five had completed a Strategic Planning process to organize the priorities for Act Five in the years ahead. This process made clear 3 themes for our organization and community:
Establish Home
Rooting Act Five in a sustainable home base unlocks all that Act Five might grow into in the years to come.
Open Doors
Prioritizing financial accessibility for all who desire to join Act Five and leading program that allows more people to be formed here.
Tell Our Story
Through communication and recruitment development, along with strong partnerships and new initiatives, we must tell our story widely and clearly.
It was clear that, for us to know which doors we were opening and what story we were to tell, our first priority – establishing home – was an immediate priority.
As executive director of Act Five, and as a foolishly hopeful person at times, I wrote to the owner one more time in December 2024. I articulated again our longings to remain at 75 Blake St and offered a price, only $50,000 more than we had offered back in January 2024. I pressed send and let go. This was it. A last shot.
One Last Knock
I had pursued many other options in Hamilton at this point, each place landing as a clear no for various reasons. 75 Blake St was our home. Until the door was shut entirely, I could not imagine anything else. This email represented a final knock on the door.
A day later, the owner replied – “I want to work with you…” followed by an offer within reason of ours. Something had changed. The winds had turned.
One month later, on January 17, 2025, the owner signed an offer sheet to sell 75 Blake St to Act Five. We met in the middle of our previous offers, and he requested a quick process – we had only 2.5 months to secure necessary funding which was, to put it mildly, an optimistic goal.
Yet, we had prayed. A door had opened. So we stepped through.
By March 23, 2025, a week before our deadline, we crossed the funding minimum needed to secure the purchase of 75 Blake St – a huge day of celebration. Two months later, on May 30th, we closed on the property and took over ownership of the home that has already welcomed and been central in the shaping of over 135 young adults.
Plans for the Future
We have only begun to know and love our neighbours and neighbourhood. Our gardens remain in their early years. Our kitchens and living spaces are not yet what we imagine they might be. The dreams of all those who now get to come through these doors, hear stories in this basement, sing and dance and share meals around these tables… these dreams are now allowed to grow to become something real.
“Act Five has established our home.”
As I write, plans are in place to begin renovations this summer – drainage improvements, electrical upgrades, new windows and bathrooms – and those plans ramp up in 2027. God’s grace through the generosity of many has been humbling to witness these past months and we are hopeful that this might continue. There remains another $1.3 million to raise for us to complete our plans to renovate and pay back short-term loans that helped us get where we are today.
For now though, this is a good story. If you agree, will you share it with others? Invite your community into the story of what God is doing here and join with us as we hope toward what God might do here in the years to come. (Consider requesting copies of our Spring 2025 issue of “Life on the Porch” to get onto more coffee tables!)
Act Five is committed to stewarding this home at 75 Blake St. We are committed to being a faithful presence in the Blakely neighbourhood and city of Hamilton; in this place, we look forward to welcoming more students, residents, staff, community members and guests that they might be welcomed, shaped and inspired.
Thank you for being on this road with us.
Sincerely,
Jon Berends, Executive Director
If you are interested in learning more about Act Five’s ongoing Capital Project: “Establishing Home”, visit www.actfive.ca/EstablishingHome. We would love for you to be part of the story in the year ahead.
