Manitoba Government Makes Progress On Anne Oake Family Recovery Centre

Press Release

September 11, 2025

The Manitoba government has signed a long-term lease agreement for the future site of the Anne Oake Family Recovery Centre, a new facility dedicated to supporting women and families on the journey to recovery, Housing, Addictions and Homelessness Minister Bernadette Smith announced today.

“This is more than a building – it’s a lifeline,” said Smith. “This centre will support Manitobans struggling with addiction access the supports they need and help them along a path to recovery. We are proud to stand with the Bruce and Anne Oake Memorial Foundation in making this vision a reality.”

The Manitoba government has committed $1.5 million in funding for the 75,000-sq.-ft. centre, which will include treatment beds and a licensed child-care facility that allows mothers to remain close to their children while receiving care, the minister noted. This funding includes $1 million for capital construction, with $500,000 for startup programming through the Mino’Ayaawag Ikwewag Strategy and the Department of Housing, Addictions and Homelessness.

An initiative of the Bruce and Anne Oake Memorial Foundation, the centre will be located adjacent to Victoria Hospital in south Winnipeg, on land formerly owned by the University of Manitoba, added the minister.

“This generous support from the Manitoba government is an investment in dignity, safety and healing,” said Scott Oake, president, Bruce and Anne Oake Memorial Foundation. “Anne believed deeply in the power of recovery and the importance of keeping families together. Her spirit will live on in every woman who finds hope within these walls.”

The project responds to the Calls for Justice from the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls and aligns with the Manitoba government’s broader strategy to support Indigenous women, girls, two-spirit and gender-diverse people.

Construction is expected to begin soon, the minister said, with the foundation continuing its capital campaign to raise the remaining funds toward its $25-million goal.

For more information on the Anne Oake Family Recovery Centre or to donate, visit www.bruceandanneoakefdn.com.

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For more information:

• Public information, contact Manitoba Government Inquiry: mgi@gov.mb.ca or 1-866-626-4862 or 204-945-3744.
• Media requests for general information, contact Communications and Engagement: newsroom@gov.mb.ca.
• Media requests for ministerial comment, contact Cabinet Communications: cabcom@manitoba.ca.

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