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Maison La Virevolte: Where everyone is treated like a neighbour
In the midst of families’ growing needs for housing, food, and parenting support, Maison La Virevolte has focused on prevention. Their goals: intervene early before problems start; provide advice to young single parents as they need it; support children; and advocate for rights whenever necessary. This vital initiative is therefore a source of essential support for neighbourhood families.
A window onto family realities
Located in a building on Le Moyne Street West, Maison la Virevolte has been a fixture of the Old Longueuil landscape for decades. The agency was born directly in the public housing projects (HLMs) in the Bienville sector, and these roots have shaped its identity and approach to this day. Here, families are treated like neighbours: they are welcomed, listened to, and supported when the pressures of daily life become too heavy.
Over time, the agency has grown around the simple idea of providing a space where parents never feel alone as they navigate the challenges of raising children, coping with finances, dealing with mental overload, or accessing basic resources. This commitment to families—who often have limited incomes and support networks—has let the agency build a lasting relationship of trust and tailor its initiatives to the neighbourhood’s needs.
A caring space where parents help each other to help their children thrive
What makes Maison La Virevolte unique is how it runs a diverse range of child development activities while providing support for parents. The daily routine of its daycare is punctuated by the comings and goings of families in the playrooms tailored for young children. Parent-child workshops also help strengthen bonds and promote learning, while support groups let parents meet up to share experiences and ideas.
School-age children can get homework assistance, and summer activities in parks turn the outdoors into a site for learning and socializing. Community life springs up around these services in the form of coffee klatches, discussions, popular education, and opportunities for collective reflection on housing, poverty, and the role of parents in the community. Everything converges around a single goal: to give families a space to catch their breath and look to the future.
A mission driven by social justice
The agency’s values of social justice, solidarity, respect, self-sufficiency, and democracy both guide and add meaning to everything it does in the field. Maison La Virevolte advocates for families’ individual and collective rights by helping them with administrative steps and getting them to engage with issues that directly affect their dignity, such as housing, food security, and access to quality services.
This commitment is also reflected in a space that is particularly accessible, as nominal membership fees, free or low-cost activities, and informal support create an environment where no family feels excluded.
We sat down with Guy Levesque, Executive Director of Maison La Virevolte, at the agency’s offices. In this short video, he explains the agency’s role as a community space and how the team supports families in Vieux-Longueuil.
Watch the video
Maison La Virevolte recognized for its evaluation process
In 2026, Maison La Virevolte received the Solidaires Evaluation for its extensive Action Research on Family Needs with 300 families in Vieux-Longueuil. This combination of surveys, field interviews, and discussion groups helped the agency better understand the neighbourhood’s realities and target their initiatives in a more focused way.
The project stood out through its participatory approach, in-depth methodology, and ability to translate what families say into concrete actions, which in turn strengthens local engagement and empowers parents.
1 out of 5 people receives our help.
5 out of 5 people benefit from it.
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Supporting a network of over 375 community agencies also means promoting an inclusive, poverty-free society.
