Calgary Domestic Violence Shelters: Care Amid Funding Crisis

CALGARY, AB — A Calgary domestic violence shelter's welcome package — toiletries, snacks, and a handwritten note — is making the rounds online, a small snapshot of frontline care during a month when Alberta's shelter workers are being asked to do more with less.

The package, shared on Reddit this week, arrived as the Alberta Council of Women's Shelters launched its "Love a Shelter" campaign in February 2026, a public push to recognize the staff holding the line as demand continues to outpace capacity across the province.

The Numbers Behind the Gratitude

The personal account stands in sharp contrast to the system-wide reality: In the 2023-24 fiscal year, Alberta shelters turned away 31,248 people — an all-time high — due to lack of space. For the first time in over a decade, children made up 40% of those rejections. Calgary Police Services logged a 24% spike in domestic-related crimes between 2022 and 2024, and violent domestic incidents in Q1 2025 jumped to 1,575 victims, up from 1,297 the year prior.

Translation: The welcome packages exist, but so do the waitlists.

The Money Trail

The province has attempted to patch the gaps. Alberta Budget 2025 allocated approximately $60 million for women's shelters, including a one-time 3.5% operational bump. A $10 million increase over four years was announced, with $3 million earmarked for 2024-25. Another $3 million in one-time payments hit shelters in February 2025. The 10-year Strategy to End Gender-Based Violence, unveiled in May 2025 by Minister Tanya Fir, came with $19.8 million attached.

But advocates, including ACWS Executive Director Cat Champagne and NDP Status of Women Critic Julia Hayter, have been clear: one-time payments don't build long-term capacity. The Central Alberta Women's Emergency Shelter confirmed its base funding — $1,988,321 — hasn't budged since 2015. Roughly 30% of Alberta shelters have cut programs since April 2023.

The Friction

The political tension is straightforward. The province points to new funding streams and a multi-year plan. The opposition and shelter directors counter that operational budgets are frozen in 2015 while crisis calls have exploded. YW Calgary, which received funding to maintain increased capacity in September 2025 and marked its 115th anniversary in December, is among the organizations keeping doors open. FearIsNotLove supports roughly 20,000 individuals annually.

The Reddit post doesn't mention wait times or turnaways. It mentions kindness. In a system where 31,248 people were denied a bed last year, that distinction matters.

What's Next

The "Love a Shelter" campaign runs through February 2026, designed to spotlight the workers assembling those welcome packages while the funding debate continues in Edmonton. The next concrete milestone: the 2026-2027 budget cycle, where advocates will push for base funding increases that match demand, not just one-time injections that expire before the crisis does.