Homeless Windsorites trained in self-advocacy by Downtown Mission

Five people graduated from the Downtown Mission's first self-advocacy program — Speakers for Change.

It's a peer leadership and advocacy program which gives participants the skills they need to help tell their personal story.

The six-week program provided connected graduates with guest speakers who shared their own stories and the opportunity to be more comfortable speaking in public.

The program was paid for through a grant from the Catherine Donnelly Foundation.

"Platforms such as Speakers for Change that deal with issues like poverty and homelessness are a very good platform to have the voices of people that know, that have lived experience of poverty or homelessness to be a part of the change," said Mbonisi Zikhali.

He was one of the five who completed the course. Zikhali, a university graduate of journalism, has experienced homelessness and has stayed at the Downtown Mission. He's taken this experience and plans to use it to help change attitudes toward homelessness.

Chris Thibert tells his story

6 years ago

Duration 1:10

Chris Thibert, facilitator for the Downtown Mission's Speakers for Change program said he's learned a lot while helping others. The program helped people experiencing homelessness the chance to learn how to self-advocate.

"Being a part of a platform that is geared toward peer support is very critical," he said. "Because you have people that have a lived experience and perhaps have ideas that fall out of the scope of organizations."

He said organizations often miss the critical eye needed to help respond effectively.

While he was studying with Speakers for Change, a woman suggested he apply for law school​.

Zikhali will starts the University of Windsor's law program on Sept. 4.

Working the program

Three facilitators helps guide the participants. Chris Thibert said he has learned a lot in that role. 

"Everybody goes through stuff in life right," Thibert said. "When we hold it in it festers and it gets worse, so I think when we speak about it and let it go it's awesome."

Four years ago, he was a homeless drug addict living in the Mission. Now, he's four years sober and married. He still visits the Downtown Mission — but as an employee.

"I think everybody needs a voice and I think a lot of times people that are homeless and people that are living the experience and go through stuff like that, they don't have a voice," Thibert said. "This gives them a change to speak out and talk about what they go through."