By Susie Scott, Child and Youth Support Worker

Because of THOSE times. Those times when you can see, taste, hear and feel just how much the care providers need a break; so that they can be their best as care providers.

Those times when I know, he is getting a much-needed break at the same time.

Those times when I know, I am helping to relieve stress and provide care. But — it is the relationships I have built that matter the most. What started as a respite position for me has evolved into a deep-rooted friendship.

 

I have been a respite care provider for the same family for the past five years. His foster family is able to go on much-needed breaks and vacations, knowing that a capable and caring worker is there in their place. He can get the time-outs he needs: go to the beach, look at spiders, play video games, or go on bike rides (even for Ride for Refuge)! After all these years, it is still a rewarding part of my life.

I look forward to our times together. I am happy to see him grow and mature. I am happy to see the family unit have the space needed to be cheerful and stress-free.

I am happy to call him family. I am happy to help.

To learn more about the Cridge Respite Services.

Submitted by Tanya Kuhn, Nature Preschool Teacher

I have worked with children with special needs for over fifteen years. I have worked in traditional classrooms, Reggio Emilia classrooms, in the schools from kindergarten to grade twelve, and in daycare. Five years ago, The Cridge Centre for the Family’s Preschool program transitioned from a traditional indoor program to a nature-based one. I will admit that I was skeptical regarding what this transition would mean for the children with diverse abilities that I work with.

This is what I have discovered. In Nature Preschool we have taken the idea of play-based learning to the extreme. We believe in long periods of free and uninterrupted exploration. It allows the children with diverse abilities take the time they need to work on the skills that they find difficult while engaging with their friends and enjoying the play. I had one student that was working diligently on his fine motor skills. In his intervention program, he would be working with a crayon and paper but very much disliked the activity. In Nature Preschool, he sought out opportunities to colour and paint on vertical surfaces, namely the sides of rocks and decorating trees. Same skill — a different level of enjoyment. Another child worked with his physiotherapist to learn how to walk up and down the stairs, whereas at Nature Preschool this child developed core muscle strength by regularly walking up and down large rocks.

Lastly, I believe the most important things that happen in Nature Preschool are the friendships. When children are enjoying fresh air and sunshine, exploring the world in a way that is meeting their individual needs their social interactions are effortless. Kids talk more when they are moving. They cooperate when they have to accomplish difficult tasks. I see so many more friendships develop while working in Nature Preschool compared to any other class I have worked in before. The children treat each other as equals. Differences in abilities disappear. It is heart-warming!

To learn more about The Cridge Nature Preschool

By Gyneth Turner, Respite and Respitality Coordinator

My overnight bag is packed; I hope I remembered to pack at least a spare pair of undies and my book. I can always grab a toothbrush from hotel housekeeping, right? I send a quick text to the babysitter to check her ETA. I am counting the minutes now…

I wanted to check-in early, but my son’s inhalers are suddenly MIA – missing in action. There is no way I can leave him with a babysitter overnight and not have at least two on hand. So maybe the hotel will offer a late check-out? I make the required trip to the pharmacy.

The list of necessary reminders is on the fridge, I have also texted the list to Amanda, but the handwritten one on the fridge is the back-up in case her phone battery dies. I’m all about the back-up, I have Plan B’s for everything. The list is next to the list of primary phone numbers for her to call if she needs help, but mine is the one at the top, and to be honest, I want her to call me first. I must be there if my son has a problem. There is a good chance that I will get called and need to come home.

John’s dinner is in the fridge, along with snacks, breakfast, and tomorrow’s lunch. I know that Amanda could prepare it for him, but I just have not had the time to show her how, so I did it last night at around midnight. John has so many life-threatening allergies and food aversions that crafting the meals he needs is time-consuming and challenging. He has a gruelling surgery in three weeks, and it is important that he does not lose any more weight.

I am so pleased that John is crazy about Amanda! For the first time since his 6 month stint at Vancouver Children’s Hospital 2 years ago, he is ok with being away from me overnight. Being a single parent means that I am always “on duty.” Being John’s single parent means I am responsible for keeping him alive. It sounds dramatic, and of course, all parents are responsible for keeping their kids alive. For John and I the difference is that his allergies could kill him, an asthma attack could kill him, a seizure could kill him. He needs constant vigilance, medications & interventions to prevent his death – 24/7.

A soft knock at the door and Yay! Amanda has arrived! John looks at me, and we communicate without words, I kiss his forehead, “love you,” I say. Ten minutes of chat with Amanda later and I am in my car.

My Night Out

No phone call comes from Amanda.

I sip red wine in a bubble bath, I watch a movie, I remembered my toothbrush, I read my book. Best of all, I sleep all night with no interruptions in a king size bed with fresh sheets. I open my gift basket and play solitaire with a deck of cards, I eat one of the Rogers’ Chocolates – maple nut. I sleep in and order room service breakfast; they even put a rose on the little service table. I read some more, I call home, everything is fine they tell me, they are having fun, don’t rush home. I check-out early in the afternoon and drive home, stopping for gas and groceries. I plan to make a favourite of John’s for dinner, it’s one of my favourites too.

It was only one night, but I feel refreshed and ready to face another day… week … month of caregiving for my precious son.

To learn more about the Cridge Respitality program and ways to help visit https://cridge.org/rr/respitality/

Submitted by Janelle Breese Biagioni

Although Matthew Jack looks serious in this photo, his smile will light up a room. Matt began working in the kitchen at The Cridge Centre for the Family in February 2018. His journey to get here was challenging.
On September 30, 2008, Matt was walking to work at the Embassy Inn. It was only his third day on the job as a cook. Prior to this job, Matt had worked as a Sous Chef at the Sticky Wicket for 9.5 years. While walking, Matt suddenly suffered a generalized tonic-clonic seizure and fell to the curb, hitting the back of his head. The hit to Matt’s head resulted in an epidural hematoma (collection of blood that puts pressure on the brain). Matt underwent surgery that day to remove the hematoma. On October 1st, Matt underwent a second craniotomy because of oozing and blood collecting again.
The road to recovery was long. Matt was in a coma for three weeks. When he woke up, his mom was there, and it was the week before his birthday. Although Matt was in and out of consciousness, he recognized the ICU and remembered thinking he was back in “the fishbowl”. At 5 years of age, Matt underwent surgery to treat an abnormal connection between the esophagus and the trachea called a tracheoesophageal fistula. Matt suffered many bouts of pneumonia growing up, so hospital stays in the ICU were not unfamiliar to him.
Over the next three months, Matt worked hard to recover. He suffered from short-term memory, attention, and concentration issues. His balance was impaired, and he struggled with fatigue and word-finding. On Christmas Eve in 2008, Matt was discharged and went home to his family.
Matt’s family is a very close and loving group. He is one of 9 children. Matt’s brother stepped in and found Matt a new place to live which is close to Victoria General Hospital. He and his cat still live in this unit. Matt’s brother lives close by, so he gets to help with his nieces and nephews and help with chores like cutting the grass for his brother and sister-in-law.
Matt knew he wanted to return to cooking. Leonard Regan from Infocus Rehabilitation Services was working with Matt and knew of the Kale King project at the Cridge. With the blessing of Chef Nik, survivors in the Cridge Brain Injury Services adapted Chef Nik’s much-loved Flourless Chocolate Fudge Cookies to include kale to sell at outdoor markets. Leonard made the introduction and Matt joined the team. Not only did Matt become a star baker for the team, he went on to help prepare, cook and serve meals in the Breakfast and Lunch Programs for the Cridge Daycare and Pacific Christian School.
When asked what attracted him to cooking, Matt replied, “I knew since Grade 5 that I wanted to be a cook. At school, we had to do a project that showed what we wanted to do when we left school. I joined in with a group to make chocolate chip cookies. I think I wanted to be in the group because of the number of girls (insert impish grin) but it also sounded like fun. When I came home from school that day, I told my mom that I wanted to bake cookies for the rest of my life. My mom says I was always in the kitchen after that.”
Although our cookie and food program team were sad to see Matt move on, everyone knew Matt could do more and if he stayed where he was, he wouldn’t reach his maximum potential. When a job as the cook came up in the Cridge kitchen, Matt jumped at the chance to apply.
“I love working at the Cridge. I get to do a lot of different things: cooking, baking, and organizing. I also get to be creative and have input. For example, if my duties for the day are making the vegetables, I can prep and cook them any way that I want. I like that.”
Matt sees himself staying with the Cridge for a long time; however, he holds a dream very close to his heart. Matt would like to open his own place and call it Think Café. His menu will be designed to provide the best nutritional sources of fuel for a person’s brain!