FAQ's
General Questions:
Volunteering:
Donating:
General Questions
Why are you called The Mustard Seed?
In the Bible, Matthew 17:20, 21 says that if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you can move mountains. This verse served as a vision statement for The Mustard Seed when we started up a small organization having to move mountains of indifference.
When did The Mustard Seed start? What is the history of The Mustard Seed?
The Mustard Seed began in 1984 by providing meals and a place of spiritual worship and comfort out of First Baptist Church. It moved into the Kononia House on 13th Avenue on November 25, 1984. In February 1992, The Mustard Seed acquired its current home at 102 -11 Ave SE. After extensive renovations, The Mustard Seed moved into its new building on December 22, 1992. The programs have continued to grow and develop in response to our guest’s needs. Today, we operate four ministry centres across the province, and provide far-reaching, expansive programs and services in education and employment, health and wellness, supported housing, and personalized life plans to help guests leave street life.
The Mustard Seed is a Christian organization. How does this affect your operations?
The Mustard Seed is a Christian organization and all our employees are Christians. Our guests and volunteers do not have to adhere to Christianity to volunteer or use our services. We do not require that guests and volunteers share our beliefs. If they desire to learn more about our faith, we can meet with them or they can attend various church services or Bible studies or meet with our staff or chaplain.
How do you help people get off the streets and develop the skills they need to ensure they don’t go back?
Our programs are designed to assist people in meeting their essential needs, as well as offering them an opportunity for life change through a unique and sustainable set of programs, which include: supported housing, employment/educational training, health and wellness services, employment partnerships, recreation and arts programs and personlized mentorship and life change plans.
What are your hours of operation?
The Mustard Seed Centre Street's hours of operation are 9-4pm, Monday - Sunday
The Mustard Seed Shelter is open 24 hrs a day, 7 days a week.
What can I do to help?
There are many opportunities for helping the homeless: you can give financially, volunteer your time, donate clothing and non-perishable food items, and raise awareness of homelessness through advocacy and government lobbying.
How is The Mustard Seed funded?
Our primary source of funding comes from private – corporate and individual donors. We receive around 16% government funding. Donations are used to fund our wide range of life-changing programs.
What percentage of your funding is spent on programs compared with administration and fund-raising?
- 85% of our budget goes towards program costs;
- 6% goes towards facility and technology;
- 4% goes towards administration;
- 3% towards resource development, and
- 2% amortization.
How can I be assured that my donation will be spent wisely?
Our annual budget is approved by our Board of Directors and we are audited annually. To see our complete audited financial statements, visit Financial Statements
Your money will be invested in The Mustard Seed’s services and programs that function to provide our guests with the essential services they need (food, shelter, clothing, health services) to a wide range of programs that serve to educate, inform, train and empower our guests to lead healthy, independent lives. We are committed to maximizing every dollar provided to The Mustard Seed for the greatest benefit of our guests, as well as minimizing our overhead/administrative costs (In 2008, administrative costs were only 4% of the total budget and resource development was 3%).
How many volunteers do you have?
In 2007 we had over 11,000 volunteers serve in either a one time capacity, or on a regular weekly basis. Without these volunteers most of our programs could not run. Volunteers do everything from administration, to food preparation and service, to facilitating bible studies.
How is The Mustard Seed different from other organizations that provide similar services?
The Mustard Seed is not just an overnight shelter or soup kitchen - we offer guests a wide range of services to assist them in taking positive steps towards moving off the street. Our services range from employment assistance and training, to education training, to transitional housing – all in an attempt to help our guests develop and build the independence, self-confidence, physical and emotional well-being, and skills that they need to lead healthy, productive lives off the street. We strive to build positive, supportive and lasting relationships with our guests that will encourage and inspire them to make meaningful changes in their lives.
What are your guest demographics?
We have about 80% men and 20% women at The Mustard Seed Shelter.
Volunteering
How do I go about volunteering?
The best way to learn about volunteering is to visit the Volunteer section of our website to see the options available. Here you can also fill out an online application.
Can I bring my kids down?
Youth can volunteer with their parents or an adult. The ratio for youth is 1 adult to 3 youth in areas that are not frontline ministry, except at lunchtime. For children under 12 we have family opportunities during holidays such as Christmas and Easter.
On the 3rd Saturday of each month, with the exception of December, there is a program called Youth in Service which allows parents and youth (ages 12 to 17) to volunteer serving lunch on the main floor with a minimum ratio of 1 adult to 1 youth.
What is the volunteer process?
Individual Volunteers - Volunteers who want to become regular volunteers are required to fill out an application, attend volunteer training, complete a police clearance check, provide three references and sign a statement of faith. By signing the statement of faith, volunteers agree to adhere to The Mustard Seed’s mission statement but do not have to share our religious beliefs.
Group Volunteers – Volunteers who want to volunteer as a group must complete the group booking form. The leader of the group must sign a statement of faith. Groups will then be placed depending on their availability.
Donating
Is The Mustard Seed a registered charity?
Yes, it is a registered charity and therefore can issue tax receipts for donations. Our legal registered name is Mustard Seed (Calgary) Street Ministry Society and our BN # is 874532518RR0001
When I am on your database, do you give out my information or sell your donor lists to anyone?
We never give out information about our donors and we do not sell our lists.
Does The Mustard Seed take donations of clothing for kids, used shoes, toys, household appliances, etc?
We do accept donations of these items. As we have limited storage space, items which we are not able to use such as children’s clothing and appliances will be donated to other agencies which have a need for these items. Due to our limited space, we are not able to accept furniture.
Does The Mustard Seed pick up donations from people’s house?
We are not able to pick up donations from private residences as we do not have the resources.
