Ashanti Mesha Morgan had just completed a successful first year as a fashion student at Toronto Metropolitan University. She was engaged in her studies and becoming more passionate about her photography hobby.

The future looked bright—except that she had nowhere to live in the city as second year approached.

“I don’t have financial support from my parents and OSAP could only take me so far. I was working 25 to 30 hours in my job, but finding the funds to pay for rent was really hard,” she said.

A friend referred her to Eva’s rent subsidy program, which pays up to $800 a month directly to a landlord for eligible youth, for up to a year.

The program comes with case management to help youth settle into their new place and make sure they’re good tenants. While Morgan focuses on her studies, she and her three roommates have found community with one another.

“Social injustice is part of life, and we never know what we’ll experience when we step out the door. It takes a toll. Being able to have conversations with my roommates about the state of the world and how we fit within it is comforting. [Having access to] Eva’s programs helps too,” she said.

One of the ways Morgan makes sense of the world is through photography. “Some classes at TMU unlocked a sense of appreciation for the power of photography. I learned that anyone can take a photo, but when you put intent and purpose into it, you can create something really cool.”

Morgan created a photo series that illuminated the lack of diversity within the fashion program.

“The idea of Toronto as this melting pot of many people and being so diverse… that is true, but as I experience people and environments, sometimes I don’t see myself in spaces that I assumed we are present in. Being one of two to three people [of colour] in my fashion photography class was a little crazy.”

When she saw the call for submissions for artwork for Eva’s annual report, she knew she wanted to submit a photo of her mother looking out of her kitchen window while preparing a meal.

“When people look at the photo, I hope they see some hope within themselves in the areas they occupy. You have the capacity to look out the window and reflect where you are now and where you can be in the future.”

Morgan says being paid for her art and attending an event with the other artists whose work is featured in Eva’s annual report was gratifying. “It was affirming. It showed me that what I create matters. It reinspired me to keep creating.”