Story by Dale Breese.

Toni came in today to pick up her paycheque.  She was a client that Cridge Brain Injury Services supported over a year ago. She told me how much she is loving the cooking program with us. She is doing the hot lunches in the school and will be moving over to the markets this summer.  When Toni wakes up each morning, the first thing she thinks about is cooking. She is loving every day!

The most amazing part about this story is that when I met her, her #1 goal was to start cooking meals. She had never cooked a meal since her stroke. She had lost her sense of smell and experienced double vision and was too afraid to cook in case she couldn’t smell it burning or she left the oven on. Now, Toni wakes up thinking about cooking every day. We are so proud of her!

When Fahad and Mara arrived in Victoria, their faces were blank with exhaustion. The endless flights combined with 2 sick children, had sucked all emotion from their bodies. Or was it the years of fleeing war, of refugee camps, of fear and desperation? Their physical bodies had arrived in their new home, but their hearts had been broken and left behind in their home country. Picking up the pieces and starting over seemed like an insurmountable task. Where would they live? Would they be accepted? Would there be work and a community for them? How would they learn a new language and support their children in becoming Canadians? Who would help them with all these challenges?

The answer is simple: The Cridge Centre.

Over the years we have welcomed many families like Fahad and Mara’s – families that have faced incredible violence, fear, and deprivation. We have seen the brokenness and have welcomed them into our community, providing a home, support and a place to belong. Slowly, over time, we see them healing, learning and finding hope.

One of the first opportunities we offer our refugee families is to have their children placed in our childcare. It gives the parents the chance to concentrate on their mountain of tasks and allows the children a safe and welcoming place to play, learn a new language, and become integrated into Canadian culture. Very often the children learn to speak English first and then help their parents to learn as well. As the children play and make friends, the healing begins. As the parents see their children adapt, hope begins.

Your support is giving hope to a family – and healing the broken pieces.

By Marlene Goley, Manager of Cridge Transition House and Outreach Services

Young moms find Nicole and the Cridge Young Parent Outreach Program in lots of different ways.  Many are referred early in their pregnancies from midwives, nurse practitioners, or family doctors. They are often alone, unsure of their future and how they will care for a new baby.  Nicole reassures, connects them to resources, and helps them with whatever it is they need to be ready to face the daunting responsibilities ahead of them.  Others have known Nicole for a while and have stayed connected or re-connect when they need a supportive hand through another pregnancy.

However, they find Nicole, whatever the help they need, the connection they make with Nicole is truly special.  Nicole has been requested to be present at births or been called to be one of the first visitors when a new baby arrives.  She spent a lot of the Christmas holidays in the maternity ward at the hospital.  Two young moms had babies on December 25 and another on December 27.  These were followed by births in February, March, and April!  All these new babies were received with joy and love.  Nicole was able to celebrate these births with the new moms.  And for some, she has been able to help them go through with the hard decision to give their baby to an adoptive family.

The stories about the young moms in The Cridge Young Parent Outreach Program are all about the resiliency, courage, and love that is so evident when they launch safe, stable lives for themselves and their children – and is just as evident from the very beginning.

We are so blessed to be included in these precious lives.

By Sarah Molder, a practicum student

Saturday, March 17, 2018 marked the 15^th consecutive year of the UVIC Rowers Work Party at The Cridge Centre for the Family. Each year, in collaboration with the Cridge Brain Injury Services program, the University of Victoria Men’s Rowing Team volunteers their manpower to complete landscaping tasks. For the first 12 years, rowers devoted their efforts to landscaping the grounds of MacDonald House, a residential facility for survivors of brain injury. In recent years, the volunteers and team have tackled larger scale projects on the main property of The Cridge Centre for the Family.

This year, with almost 40 energetic rowers in attendance, in collaboration with the Brain Injury Services team and under the direction of Mr. Organic of Friendly Organics (aka Dave Friend), three major garden/landscaping projects were completed in record time.

Project #1. Kale King Garden Reconfiguration

With help from our Brain Injury Survivors, the rowers successfully transformed the garden into a visually appealing and fully functional food growing area, complete with ample growing space and a practical teaching area.

In April each year, the garden is transformed into a learning space for children of the daycare centre. Throughout the spring and summer months, staff and survivors facilitate weekly food growing workshops that educate, encourage, and empower children to learn and connect with organic food growing principles.

In addition to providing valuable learning to children, the garden provides interim employment opportunities for survivors of brain injury who are, as part of their lifelong rehabilitation, taking preparatory steps to achieving employment skills that will benefit them in community-based work settings (punctuality, time management, responsibility, etc.).

Project #2. Daycare Pumpkin Patch

In this part of the project, rowers and our team dug a 12 by 20-foot rainbow-shaped pumpkin patch in front of The Cridge Centre for the Family property. As workers shoveled and hauled dirt out of the patch area, they piled the soil into a neighbouring 3-foot bank that mimicked the pumpkin patch’s rainbow-shape. The idea was to utilize soil dug from the patch to simultaneously build a food-growing area to maximize space for growing and education. Talk about efficient use of resources!

Come October, The Cridge will host a highly anticipated Pumpkin Festival where children can pick and carve their very own pumpkins.

Project #3. Front Lawn Beautification

In the last phase of our work, the team and rowers did a complete restoration of the bush area on the front lawn. Workers trimmed overgrown branches and removed debris and roots obstructing the walkway to spruce up the remaining area.

In closing, we wish to extend a huge thank you to the young men (and one woman) from the UVIC Men’s Rowing Team! Your consistent efforts and enthusiasm for community involvement are highly valued by everyone here at The Cridge Centre for the Family. We look forward to working with you again!

We are especially grateful to David Friend aka Mr. Friendly Organics for on-going support!

 

A Cridge Dovetail Story

by Candace Stretch, Manager of Supportive Housing & Family Services

Recently one of our tenants needed some childcare for her 10 year old daughter, Mina, while she attended an appointment. All of the Dovetail support workers were busy in appointments with their clients at that time, and I had a few hours free, so I volunteered to hang out with Mina. I asked Mina what she wanted to do, and she said she wanted to go on a walk. So I asked Mina to show me the places in The Cridge neighbourhood where she spent her time.

The journey we took over the next hour was truly special: seeing The Cridge property and surrounding neighbourhood from her perspective gave me a whole new view of this community. There were secret meeting places, tucked-away playgrounds, neighbourhood pets that she visits each day… she even tried to convince to me to take the “short cut” and jump a fence (I couldn’t quite agree to that!). It was clear that Mina was excited and proud to be my neighbourhood tour guide.

As I reflect on this experience, a few things really stick out to me. I realize how important it is for the children we serve to feel connected to their neighbourhood. These are kids who have experienced trauma and transition. All of them have moved into this place under very stressful circumstances. It strikes me that getting to know and feel comfortable in this neighbourhood plays a significant role in their healing and future development.

Reflecting on this experience also makes me realize what a joy it is to see this little corner of the world through the eyes of a child. Mina gave me the gift of experiencing this place in a new and fresh way. All of it reaffirms for me that we live, work and play in a very special place!

 

For more information about our Supportive Housing, click here.

Note: to maintain confidentiality, some details and names in this story were altered