MoveIn Status
See our patches page.

Firsthand
The neighbourhood of Malvern is frequently misunderstood. This is a sentiment shared by many who call it home, who know that despite what the media might say, Malvern is full of life, and living. These sentiments are so commonplace and pervasive in the community that it drew the attention of the CBC, who produced a short documentary on The National (see video to the right) addressing the many misconceptions through the eyes of a group of teenagers armed with cameras. Despite being a place generally known as a “community plagued with gun violence”¹, the show reveals a much different (and likely much more common) side of Malvern - young families, students working hard to succeed, and local police involved in more than just crackdowns. Truly, there is more to this area than meets the eye.²

The Landscape
A specific portion of Malvern, known as Empringham, is a swathe of community housing in the midst of this suburban area in the former City of Scarborough. The Empringham patch is located north of Empringham Drive, between the Shawn “Blu” Rose Park to the East and Sewells Road to the West. There are a significant number of townhouses in this patch - approximately 125 units located in the Empringham Mews at 110 Empringham Drive.

The People
Many who call Empringham home refer to it as “Empz”. Residents of the Empringham Drive area are “generally working … families of all backgrounds, most being first generation Canadians or immigrant families.”³

A few years ago, an accomplished Canadian filmmaker chose Empringham to be the focus of a documentary he went on to produce for TVO, called “Empz 4 Life”. The documentary followed four young men from Empringham through some of the difficulties they face growing up in a place where they’re surrounded by challenge (and sometimes tragedy).⁴

In the census strip (approximately half a square kilometer) that contains the Empringham patch:⁵

• Population in 2006 was 3,682.
• The population density is 7,881 people per square kilometre compared with Toronto’s 866/km2 average.
• 52% of adults are married.
• The most populous age group consisted of those 15 to 19 years of age.
• 30% of families are lone-parent families - 84% of those are led by women.
• The 2005 median gross income for all lone parent households was $31,152 (this includes the middle class areas nearby), compared with a median of $39,824 for the rest of Toronto.
• 45% of residents’ mother tongues are something other than English or French.
• Similarly, 56% of the population are immigrants.
• 14% of residents over age 15 have a post-secondary certificate, diploma or degree.
• The 2006 unemployment rate was 13.1%, compared with 6.7% in the rest of Toronto.
• 65% of residents work within the immediate area (within the few blocks of the census strip).
• 89% of the population are visible minorities.

The History
Malvern was founded in the mid-1800s by a senator named David Reesor. The village was named after the popular town of Malvern in England known for its medicinal waters (apparently back in those days such waters were to be found here also). Very little from those early days still remains in Malvern today, as the village became a town which became a part of the city of Scarborough… which in turn became a part of the city of Toronto in 1998.⁶ Over the last sixty years, Malvern itself has grown similarly to the many areas around it, and is now home to a substantial amount of residential space, as well as schools, a mall, a library branch, a sports complex, a community center, and a number of parks.⁷

The Challenge
In a sea of suburbia, Malvern as a community is fighting to be understood and to redeem the perceptions of those outside. Will you come inside, bringing a listening ear and the love of Jesus? Will you move in?

Sources:
¹ rapdict.org/Malvern
² You can view the first part of the documentary here on youtube.
³ rapdict.org/Empringham
⁴ See a clip from “Empz 4 Life” here on youtube.
⁵ All statistics in the section taken from Census tract profile for 0378.17 (CT), Toronto (CMA) and Ontario.
⁶ From the Scarborough Archives.
⁷ See entry on Wikipedia.