Board Member - Director – First United Church Community Ministry Society Board of Directors
We honour that we do our work on the unceded ancestral homelands of the Səl̓ílwətaʔ (Tsleil Waututh), Xʷməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), & Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) peoples.
We are recruiting new Board Directors for our non-profit organization, First United Church Community Services Society, in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside (“DTES”). We welcome and encourage applicants of all religions, racial, ethnic and cultural backgrounds, genders, sexual orientations, abilities, and with varying life experiences.
We envision a neighbourhood where every person’s worth is celebrated, and all people thrive and for nearly 140 years, we’ve been on a mission to seek a just society by nurturing each person’s spirit through ministry, housing, advocacy, and community service.
About Us:
FIRST UNITED offers responsive low-barrier programs that serve low-income, underhoused and homeless individuals in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside.
As a registered charity, FIRST UNITED provides essential services including meals, legal advocacy, tax filing, spiritual care, mail and phone services, overdose response, essential items like clothing and toiletries, and shelter to residents in the community. FIRST UNITED also engages in systems change work to reduce homelessness, break the cycle of poverty, and address the racialization of poverty. For over 135 years, we’ve been on a mission to seek a just society by nurturing each person’s spirit through ministry, housing, advocacy, and community service.
We’re redeveloping our site into an 11-storey building purpose-built to suit the needs and interests of the community. The first four floors, operated by FIRST, will provide safe and inclusive community amenities with three times more space for our low-barrier services and programming. The seven floors above will offer safe, secure homes for Indigenous peoples operated by the Lu’ma Native Housing Society.
Regardless of circumstance, all people deserve the dignity and care that a safe, purpose-built space can provide. FIRST’s continuing services and programs include meals; shelter; help with taxes, personal hygiene items, and clothing; spiritual care; advocacy; warmth and caring; and much more.
About the Director Position
Board of Directors: there are a maximum of 15 directors, currently 10. The Board is a Policy Governance Board that works closely with the Executive Director and senior leadership team.
Status: temporary, with the possibility of renewal – assignments are on a three-year basis, through an appointment/nomination-based system.
Days of Work/Times of Work: varied, but include:
• Regularly Scheduled Board meetings are held bi-monthly on the third Thursday of each other month (January, March, May, July, September, and November). Each meeting is approximately 1.5 hours. Total regular monthly time ~ 5-7 hours
• Pre-reading for each Board meeting (reports, executives summaries, etc.)
• Board members are expected to join one or more of the following committees of the Board: Governance, Nominations, Personnel, Redevelopment, Finance, Social Justice.
• Additional time spent in this role is generally email correspondence with other Board Directors, First United Staff, and signing of relevant resolutions and other documents as necessary.
• Quarterly full day events held (i.e., Strategic Planning session – in person, etc.).
• Special events (i.e., redevelopment milestone events, recognition events, community events, etc.)
Compensation: this is a voluntary role.
The role offers the opportunity to meaningfully contribute to the oversight of a low barrier, non-profit organization in ensuring social justice is sought for all in the DTES Vancouver area.
Please send your Expressions of Interest to:
Amber Tugwood Senior Operations Coordinator
First United Church Community Ministry Society
368 Powell Street, Vancouver, BC, V6A 1G4
