Gospel Mission employees Luke Wiltshire and James Beamish The Kelowna Gospel Mission is on a hiring spree as it pushes to open a new shelter at the former BC Tree Fruits packinghouse on Bay Avenue. The nonprofit is hosting a job fair at Kelowna Gospel Fellowship Church at 3714 Gordon Drive, from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. on Wednesday and Thursday. The fair will offer on-site interviews for eight different positions ranging from caseworkers, communications workers, permanent support workers and protective services officers. There are a total of 22 openings to fill. “We are holding a job fair to fill positions for our outreach and housing programs. These programs target the most marginalized and vulnerable population. We can’t wait to open our new shelter and hope to have it up and running before the very cold weather hits. The shelter will cover and provide beds for 60 people who would otherwise have no alternative but to sleep outside,” said Mylene Garcia, director of housing and programs, Kelowna’s Gospel Mission. “It is important for our residents to have the right people for the available positions. Our goal is to make sure no one is left out in the cold this winter. Full staffing is critical to ensuring the safety of our residents, our community and our staff.” The new shelter replaces the former location at 550 Doyle Ave., which is being developed on a downtown UBC Okanagan campus. Garcia says they still haven’t occupied the new shelter space on Bay Avenue as BC Housing is still finishing renovations. Garcia says they don’t have a timeline for when it will open, but they hope it will be as soon as possible. The majority, but not all, of the positions available in the job fair are related to the Bay Avenue shelter. If you can’t make the job fair, you can apply online here.
