WISH Stories & Press Releases

With the support of an incredible leadership team and dedicated staff and volunteers, the board is confident in WISH’s ability to adapt while still living our values of acceptance, dignity and respect for street-based sex workers.

We are consciously shifting from a culture of urgency to one of intention, where we can better align our activities with our objectives and the needs of participants.

Updates on WISH participants, organizational developments, and community highlights from 2024-25.

Supporters from across the community came together to celebrate 40 years of critical support for street-based sex workers provided by WISH Drop-In Centre Society.

To remain responsive, and relevant, participant feedback is key. As WISH grappled with a significant reduction in services, InReach staff conducted 29 in-depth participant interviews to learn what services are most critical at WISH.

International Sex Worker Pride Day, September 14, was established to celebrate the self-determination of sex workers and the achievements of the sex worker rights movement. A great way to celebrate this day...

This was not just a Pizza Night, but a community strengthening and confidence building event, bringing participants together in a positive group setting. I’m more than proud to say the participants had a fabulous event. An event where they created the narrative.

WISH programs are led by WISH values—acceptance, caring, dignity, and respect—and they support the self-determination of participants. To commemorate WISH’s 40th year, we asked, “what does self-determination look like?” Local illustrator April dela Noche Milne had a beautiful response.

The day-to-day reality for non-profits is a constantly shifting landscape. This uncertainty affects efficiency, and WISH’s ability to serve participants. When donors choose to give monthly, it makes a huge difference!

InReach and Housing Support Workers prioritize self-determination, supporting participants to access what they need, in a respectful, non-judgmental environment.

This DTES non-profit is commemorating 40 years of non-judgmental support to women and gender-diverse people in need.

As featured in The Tyee.

Have you ever been faced with an impossible choice?

This year, WISH was recognized with a nomination for the Untapped Workplace Inclusion Awards, and on September 19, WISH was announced as the winner in the “Inclusive Culture Champion – Non-Profit” category.

The search for a new ED began nearly five months ago, and was conducted with the help of There Consulting, including input from WISH staff at all levels.

Have you ever been faced with an impossible choice? Everyone deserves the opportunity to make free, healthy, and positive choices—but the people WISH Drop-In Centre Society exists to serve are often denied that fundamental right.

June 6, 2023 marks the one-year anniversary of WISH’s Sex Worker Circle (SWC), held as part of our Indigenous Health & Safety Program. The Circle is a safe, dedicated space for participants who are current and active street-based sex workers.  

Choice is a loaded word. Many of the participants who walk through our doors face limited options. When Avery Gray* was living in a tent on Alexander Street, she didn’t know what WISH was. One freezing night, she was invited into the drop-in for a hot chocolate and decided to check it out.

Kwaakwii, also known as Elder Terri, is a proud Haida woman from Haida Gwaii, who came to the Lower Mainland about 30 years ago. Her journey began as a participant in the program and in less than three years she became WISH’s in-house Elder.