Laura Williams

Working together for the good of the greater co-op housing movement motivated Laura to run for the board of CHF Canada. A single mom of two girls, Laura currently lives at Village Canadien Housing Co-op in Winnipeg. Having experienced both social housing and co-operative housing, Laura would choose a co-op every time.

“Co-operative housing provides an opportunity for people from all walks of life, all income levels, not only to find an affordable home, but also to live in a place that promotes growth, provides safe community living, and offers opportunities to participate in decision-making.”

Laura has served on Village Canadien’s Board of Directors since 2020, including two years as Treasurer. She is currently in her second year as Vice President. She is one of CHF Canada’s delegates to the Co-operators, and was an active participant on the Respectful Workplace Committee at work. Laura also coordinates Black History Month awareness and events in her workplace. While she looks forward to offering her services to Village Canadien for years to come, she feels it’s time to contribute to the greater housing co-op community in the prairies and across Canada.

With a background in the social service field supporting adults with intellectual and physical disabilities, Laura places importance on ensuring co-ops meet accessibility needs and know how to best manage mental health issues. Her immediate goal, however, is to represent Manitoba and Saskatchewan.

“We need to work together as the prairies, build cohesion, collaborate, use each other as a resource, train together, and dig deep into Co-op Housing For All to understand what it looks like, who’s not under the umbrella, and figure out how they can be included.”

Laura feels a lot of people still don’t think of co-op housing when they think about solutions to the affordable housing crisis, and she’d like that to change through education, stronger communication efforts, and continual lobbying.

Outside of work, you might find Laura playing board games with friends and family, or participating in church activities.