Eva’s Initiatives for Homeless Youth is a four-star financially transparent charity with an Average demonstrated impact score. It has an above average A results reporting grade but its total overhead spending is outside Ci’s reasonable range. For every dollar donated, 62 cents are available to go to the cause.

Founded in 1989, Eva’s Initiative for Homeless Youth (Eva’s) provides emergency shelter, long-term transitional housing support, and job training programs for Torontonian youths between the ages of 16 and 24. The charity particularly focuses on the unique needs and challenges of Black homeless youth in its 2024-2027 strategic plan. According to the charity, homelessness and childhood trauma are linked, with 63% of Toronto’s youth homeless population living in an abusive household prior to homelessness. The charity runs three programs: Shelter Services, Youth Programs, and YOUth Belong. The charity spent $9.3m on its programs in the fiscal year ending September 2023 (F2023).

A Charity Intelligence 2023 Top 100 Rated Charity

Shelter Services was 55% of Eva’s program spending. In F2023, the charity’s Place, Phoenix, and Satellite emergency shelters (135 total beds) housed 140, 70, and 172 youths respectively, who stayed an average of 12 months at Eva’s shelters. According to the charity, 382 youths total stayed at these three shelters in F2023.

Youth Programs was 27% of Eva’s program spending. This includes the charity’s Graphic Communications & Print Training (JPEG) and Youth Succeeding in Employment Program (YSEP) employment training services. In F2023, 50 and 36 youths were supported by JPEG and YSEP respectively. The charity reported a 33% increase in JPEG participants compared with F2022.

YOUth Belong was 18% of Eva’s program spending. This program provides self-identified Black youths emergency shelter, long-term housing, and rent subsidies. In F2023, the charity helped 14 youths transition to independent housing, an 8% increase from 13 youths in F2022. The YOUth Belong shelter (65 beds) housed 83 youths who stayed an average of 12 months. The charity also provided rent subsidies to 83 youths.

Eva’s Initiative for Homeless Youth improved its financial reporting in F2023 in that it properly separated government funding from donations in its F2023 audited financial statements. This means that Eva’s government funding reported on its F2023 T3010 filings reconciled with its audited statements. Because of this improvement, Ci completed a material restatement of Eva’s F2022 financial statements.

In F2023, the charity received $3.5m in donations and $8.2m in government funding, a 48% and 2% increase from $2.4m and $8.0m in F2022 respectively. Administrative costs are 14% of revenues and fundraising costs are 24% of donations. This results in total overhead spending of 38%. This means that for every dollar donated, 62 cents are available to go to the cause. This falls outside Ci’s reasonable overhead spending range. Eva’s has fallen outside of this range since 2014.

Eva’s spent $9.3m on its programs in F2023, a 2% increase from $9.1m, in F2022.

At the end of F2023, Eva’s Initiative for Homeless Youth had $5.0m in reserve funds (cash and investments) which covers 54% or slightly over 6 months of its annual program spending.

Profile updated June 24, 2024 by Julian Dranitsaris. Comments and corrections may be forthcoming.