Community Development Worker

At House of Friendship we believe in what we are doing. We get out of bed each day to make a difference in our community; to walk with and to serve. We are not happy with the status quo. We get energy from ongoing learning and growth. We lead with passion and believe without a doubt that everyone deserves to belong and thrive. We live and breathe our values of Compassion Inclusion Justice Dignity and Hope. And we have fun!

Sounds pretty great doesnt it It is!

We are hiring for an individual to join our Community Services Neighbourhoods team as a Community Development Worker. The Community Service Worker will coordinatecommunitydevelopmentand engagementactivities and provide programsthat build local capacity and reduce the impacts of povertyisolationand food insecurity.

This is a contract position from approximately June 1 2026 to March 5 2027. This is a full-time position (37.5 hours per week). Schedule is Monday to Friday 9:00am to 5:00pm with the potential for some evening shifts. Valid G class drivers license and access to a reliable personal vehicle required. Successful completion of a Police Records Check (Vulnerable Sector) required pre-employment.

Key Responsibilities:

• Take a lead role in planning promotion and implementation offood and/or communityprograms for the communitycentresand partner sites

• Take a lead role in community consultation and community leadership development initiatives

• Complete administrative tasks related to the programs including documentation inappropriatedatabasesassigned to the programregistration management andrecord keepingdata entry surveymanagementandprogram expenses

• Coordinate the team tomaintainacleansafeand welcomingspaceatthe assignedcommunitycentreor programming space and to ensure that the team members arecomplying withHealth and Safety standards in all aspect of the program

• Lead and overseea team ofpart timestaffvolunteersand studentson site to implementprograms and initiatives

• Provide the lead role in addressingany incidentsoccurring at the program both physical andbehaviouralincludingsupporting staff to completeincident reports for both House of Friendship and partner sites

• Develop andmaintainpositive relationships with community partners related tothe foodand/orcommunityprograms

• Act asthesite contact for the communitycentreprogram at partner locations

• Complete and support other program staff students and volunteers to complete administrative tasks related to the programs including registration record keeping and managing expenses

• Participate and support other program staff students and volunteers toparticipatein program evaluation including administering surveys andassistthe Supervisor in reporting to funders

• Assistwith other tasks as needed at the various communitycentresand partner locations

Job Specific Knowledge/Skills:

• Ability to work independently with minimal supervisionacting as the sitecontactfora team of staffvolunteersand students

• Ability to make decisions andproblemsolveindependentlywith the support of their supervisor

• Interest in and understanding of community development principles

• Confident leading and coordinating programs comfort building relationships with diverse community members

• Lived experience of and/or commitment to issues of poverty foodjusticeand social justice an asset

• Proficiencywith computer skills includingMS Office(MS Word and Excel) with ability to learnnew programs(L2F)

• Proficient written and verbal communication skills working level English

• Ability to communicate in language relevant to our communities (Arabic Amharic Tigrinya Somali Farsi) with connection to diverse cultural communities is an asset

Education/Experience:

• Post-secondary education in a related field such as social sciences community development food and nutrition recreationrequired

• A minimum of 2 yearsexperience in program planning group facilitation and community outreach with diverse populations in a community setting

• Experience working with people on a low income is an asset

Critical Skills:

• Commitment to understand and uphold the mission and values of House of Friendship

• Exemplary emotional intelligence resilience communication conflictmanagementand problem-solving skillsrequired

• Ability to work professionally as a team member with staffparticipantsand communitymembers

• Experience or strong interest in working with diverse populations including people from various cultural backgrounds income levels and sensitivity to their needs

• Experience with and commitment to using an anti-racism anti-oppressive and trauma informed approach to consultation program design evaluations of processes and service delivery

• Must be dependable professional flexible a team player and have a positive attitude

• Respectfulsupportiveand engaging approach to persons with physical and/or cognitive disabilities addictions mentalillnessand other life challenges

• Excellent project timeline and deadline management skills including skills inlogistics planning and detailed record keeping

Compensation:

At House of Friendship we know that our team members are the key to the success of our organization and our ability to provide essential services to the support of our mission and in alignment with our values House of Friendship is committed to ensuring fair market competitive and rewarding compensation practices for all of our team members. We aspire to support our team members to create a great work environment where our team is able to thrive succeed and have a positive work experience.

House of Friendship compensation practices including our pay grid have been developed using documented leading pay practices in the not-for-profit sector including Pathways to Decent Work (Ontario Nonprofit Network) and Ontario Living Wage Network. We value the experience that new team members bring to the organization and have a process in place to review previous related experience for placement on our pay grid.

We value the work that you do with fair pay and benefits:

• Time off includesvacation pay and2personal daysper year

• Employee & FamilyAssistance Program

Rate of Pay:

At House of Friendship all compensation ranges are categorized under a series of grades and we base our payment structure on internal determining rate of pay a candidates past related experience will be taken into consideration.

Grade: 4

Min: $23.43

Mid: $25.65

Max: $28.90

Working Conditions:

• Must be able to lift 20-50lbsand stand for 3-4 hours at a time(for food programsonly)

• Generallydaytime weekday hours occasionaleveningsand weekends

• May include travel throughout the region ofWaterloo

• Mayencounterparticipantsat program siteswhoareunder the influence of drugs or alcohol and/or experiencingsymptoms of mental illness

This role is being posted to fill a current vacancy.

House of Friendship is open and inviting to qualified candidates with lived experience.

House of Friendship supports justice equity diversity and inclusion in our workplace. We strive to be a workplace free of harassment and discrimination and we are committed to removing barriers and being an inclusive work environment. House of Friendship is a place where each person can bring their true selves and feel that they belong. We aspire to be an organization that is anti-racist and anti-oppressive so that our team and therefore our community can truly belong and thrive.

We invite applications from all qualified candidates and actively encourage applications from members of groups with historical and/or current barriers to accessing employment including but not limited to Indigenous Peoples members of racialized groups persons with disabilities women and members of the 2SLGBTQIA community.

If you require accommodations to be able to participate fully at any stage in the recruitment process including applying for this position please let us know so that we can discuss accommodation options. Accommodations will be provided upon request.

If you are as passionate as we are about serving the community lets talk.

To apply please submit your resume and cover letter here:

end of day May 13 2026.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is not being used in the screening of applications.