‘We’ll get there’

The patch of land east of the Victoria Hospital is currently just a field of rocks, mounded dirt, and concrete piles. However, Scott Oake, who will be opening the new Anne Oake Family Recovery Centre, envisions it will be a welcoming space for women and their children in a year's time. The centre, a first-of-its-kind facility in Canada and North America, is expected to open in 2023 and will provide on-site child care for women in the program.

Oake's late wife, Anne, and he first built the Bruce Oake Recovery Centre for men in 2021, which looked "almost identical" to their renderings. For the Anne Oake Centre, the founders believe they will meet or exceed their fundraising goal of $35 million, despite construction costs skyrocketing due to the U.S. trade war on Canada. The new facility will be twice the size of the Bruce Oake Centre at 75,000 square feet.

The Oakes are receiving support from across the community, including iconic CBC sportscaster Ron McLean, Premier Wab Kinew, Addictions Minister Bernadette Smith, Families Minister Nahanni Fontaine, Mayor Scott Gillingham, Winnipeg Jets assistant GM Craig Heisinger, Winnipeg South MP Terry Duguid, and co-chairs Gary Doer and Bonnie Buhler.

This level of support marks a stark contrast to the resistance the Oakes faced when working to get the Bruce Oake Centre approved and built eight years ago. Duguid, whose riding includes the Anne Oake Centre, expressed optimism about the project's reception, stating that change in perception can lead to support.