Hans Ohrstrom began donating to Covenant House Toronto when he was living in a basement apartment, facing his own challenges and was barely able to pay his rent.
“I was eating 2 for 1 pizza for most of my meals – one for breakfast, one for lunch,” Hans said. “I grew up in that - that was normal.”
He had just quit his job as a district manager of an apparel company and was trying to pursue his dream of moving into a career in real estate. Despite success taking a little longer to come than he’d hoped, he began donating to Covenant House – a cause he holds close to his heart.
Now, 18 years later, Hans is a successful realtor and continues to donate to Covenant House. On April 11, Hans will join hundreds of other caring, action-oriented individuals in giving up a comfortable night’s rest as part of Sleep Out: Champions Edition event. Here, professionals, companies, teams and individuals come together to ensure that young people experiencing homelessness and survivors of trafficking find the support they need at Covenant House Toronto.
This will be his first time sleeping out to raise critical funds and awareness about youth homelessness and trafficking and the important work Covenant House Toronto does to help support youth to move towards a bright future of their making.
“I have an understanding of the need to give young people a real chance at a future,” he said. “I really like what Covenant House is doing – where would these kids turn otherwise?”
With his team, Hans is looking forward to learning more about the comprehensive support system Covenant House provides to young people in our community. From meeting their immediate needs like food and shelter, to offering wraparound medical care, counselling and much more, Covenant House Toronto is dedicated to helping youth aged 16-24.
“Toronto’s given a lot to me, it’s my home city,” he said. “I want to give back in the ways that I can.”