By Derek Weiss

Hannah Walker at the window of her Velvet Matador coffee shop in Vancouver.

“That’s the first thing I changed when I started the business in this space a few months ago,” said the shop’s 18 year old owner, Hannah Walker. “We took down the bars, and the entire storefront suddenly felt warmer and more open.”

Since then, locals – from support workers and local families to fashion designers and community members of all descriptions – have been discovering the new space, and each other.

The Velvet Matador coffee shop has a relaxed vibe and genuine warmth, traits shared with its owner.

Growing up in Chiara House, an intentional Christian community in the DTES, Hannah was surrounded by a nurturing family throughout her childhood – important support in a neighbourhood with a reputation for extreme poverty, drug addiction and mental illness.

An influential part of her life for the last nine years has been an intentional break from the often intense Downtown Eastside streets, during summers at Camp Sunrise on the Sunshine coast.

When Hannah was nine years old, Union Gospel Mission sponsored her through the UGM Summer Camp program, which helps 750 kids every summer who wouldn’t otherwise be able to afford camp.

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“My parents have five other kids, and to send all of us to camp would have been a huge expense. It just wouldn’t have happened,” Hannah said.

Camp was a place where Hannah could mature in her Christian faith, learn to value community even more deeply and just have some fun closer to nature.

When her love for camp eventually led her into a position on the camp staff, she ended up working with other kids sent by UGM to Camp Sunrise.

“It was great to connect with kids from my neighbourhood in the camp setting, away from the challenges they face here,” she said. “Then, when I saw them back home again, I could continue to be a listening ear and helping hand.”

Hannah plans to return to camp this summer, and is starting to train people from the neighbourhood to run the shop while she’s away.

For Hannah, it’s all part of ethos of the Velvet Matador.

“I want this place to give life to the community, whether that’s as a venue for the arts or music, or as a place where people from the neighbourhood can get training and skills.”

Hannah is tangible proof that camp can impact a young life in a way that, in turn, can help transform a community.

She credits her time at camp for her work ethic and team building skills. More importantly, she learned a lot from what it means to be valued.

“Camp is always a really good place for encouraging people and letting them know that their work is appreciated and important. I think that’s a key point for helping them pursue goals they believe in.”

For info on UGM’s Kid’s Camp, contact: ugm.ca/camp or  888.347.4673.

April 2010