Our History

The Wexford Residence is a non-profit, charitable organization founded by the Brotherhood Foundation. The Brotherhood Foundation is an outgrowth of the Church of the Christian Brotherhood.

As far as is known, this is the only church in the history of Ontario to have been established by an Act of Incorporation in the Provincial Legislature. The Bill incorporating the new Church was passed in March of 1919.

The first site for the Church was the Erskine Presbyterian Church formerly at Elm and University Avenue. Between the time when this property was expropriated for the Hospital for Sick Children in June 1948 and the construction of a new church at Blake and Grantbrook Avenue in 1960, the congregation held services at 111 Maitland Avenue which eventually became the home of the National Ballet of Canada.

By the spring of 1966 it had become obvious that declining membership and financial pressures made the closing of the Church inevitable. The assets of the congregation from the sale of the Church were put into a trust, and the interest on these funds was distributed to charitable Christian purposes.

In 1972 it was decided to put the money to good use. The Brotherhood Foundation was formed with the purpose of building a nursing home or similar project to help the aged.

With additional fundraising and assistance from various levels of Government, this multi-level seniors complex known as The Wexford Residence opened in 1978. It consisted at the time of retirement and nursing home beds, independent seniors apartments and an elderly persons centre. It was known at the time as “The House that love built”.

The Wexford Residence was incorporated in 1995 with its own Board of Directors which assumed responsibility for management and operation of the facility (as distinct from the Brotherhood Foundation, the founding organization).

The Wexford Residence enjoys a well-deserved reputation in the community for providing a caring and compassionate home-like environment in which seniors experience a quality of life that is highly conducive to their health and well-being.