The executive director of Operation Come Home, says his non-profit has experienced a doubling of their workload in recent years, but he believes the mayor’s recent pledge to end youth homelessness in five years is possible. “From 2021 to 2024, we saw a doubling in our work, essentially. And that’s measured at the street level,” John Heckbert told CTV Your Morning Ottawa on Wednesday. “Last year in 2024, we saw 752 individual youth come to Operation Come Home, and I think those trends continued into 2025.” Operation Come Home is a non-profit that helps youths experiencing or at-risk of experiencing homelessness in Ottawa by providing employment, education, housing and support services. While Heckbert says his organization’s workload has increased, he believes Mayor Mark Sutcliffe’s pledge to end youth homelessness in Ottawa by 2030 is well within reach. “The first thought is that it’s absolutely doable,” said Heckbert. “It’s a very low number of new homes and supports that we need to put in place to help solve youth homelessness in Ottawa.” As part of their ‘Housing Works’ initiative, Operation Come Home rents units from landlords and sublets them to youth in need. Heckbert says that, by their estimates, Operation Come Home needs 310 additional apartment units for permanent housing. Heckbert also says youth homelessness could be addressed with more supportive housing for people in high need and prevention at the high school level, all of which he says is “extremely achievable.” In his Tuesday press briefing, the mayor said between 50 and 100 young people are experiencing homelessness in Ottawa, a number that is often changing. “Ending youth homelessness is the first step to ending all homelessness. That’s because we know that almost 50 per cent of those who experience adult homelessness were first homeless before the age of 16,” said Sutcliffe. Sutcliffe said the 2026 Budget, set to be unveiled in November, will feature several measures and investments to assist in the pledge.
