Kavita John on building connections that nurture new opportunities.
Story by Lauren Bentley
Photography by Rachel Pick
It was 2017, and Kavita John was considering taking a new job: building manager of Lakepark Village, a family-oriented More Than A Roof community in Burnaby. Kavita, her husband, and their two young daughters had recently immigrated to Canada from India, and were still trying to find their footing.
“We moved with a lot of hopes and no concrete plans,” she says.
As they drove into the complex, a handful of kids who had been playing outside rushed up to their car, asking if her girls—then 7 and 11—wanted to join them.
“We couldn’t even stop the car before the girls were out the door, playing with complete strangers,” Kavita says. It was a small moment, but it told her something powerful: a real, thriving community was already being nurtured. Kavita took the job.
Doing more together
Kavita came to More Than a Roof with a core belief that communities are powerful.
“I see that community is a solution to any problem. It seems like a bold thing to say . . . but I firmly believe that in all situations, community is a powerful answer,” Kavita says.
While still living in India, Kavita helped rally her neighborhood to help upgrade a local park. Though it was a small project, the idea that people could create significant value from very little by working together stayed with her.
“It just rooted me in this firm belief that communities coming together can do so much.”
As a building manager, she lived out her conviction by connecting tenants with people and activities that would help them write the next chapter of their lives.
“The mindset I go into work with is that there is an abundance in all communities—the gifting, the resources, energies, passion, everything is already there,” she says. She sees her role as finding and activating these gifts, acting as a steward of relationships within the building.
Early on, for example, Kavita met a high school aged resident. A talented artist, the tenant was also extremely shy. Kavita asked her if she’d be willing to run an art camp for kids in the building. Though she was nervous, the young artist said yes.
The result was a 12-week art camp that brought the community together. “I supported her, but all the talent, energy, and action came from her,” Kavita recalls.
As a result of the skills she showed in planning and leading the camp, the tenant was awarded a full-ride Beedie scholarship and is about to graduate from UBC. Since then, at least five other young people have won full-ride scholarships from Lakepark with support from opportunities fostered within the community itself—some of whom never expected to go to university.
“Without safe, stable, excellent and affordable housing, none of these things are going to be possible,” she notes.
Writing her next chapter
Recently, Kavita took on a supervisory role overseeing a number of More Than a Roof communities.
She recognizes how formative her years managing Lakepark Village were. “I learned so much from the people living there. How they found a way to be outward looking, others focused, and joyous,” she says. “I left as a different person than when I started.”
Despite the change in title, her core mission—building community and connection—remains the same. “In this role, I am throwing myself into the opportunity to nurture the team so they can support our collective mission to provide housing with excellence and care. This is the foundation from which we can build connectedness and community.”
