When Kim was 20, she was pregnant and alone. She wanted stability and a good life for herself and her baby, but she didn’t know how to achieve it. Then she met Nicole, the Outreach Worker for The Cridge Young Parent Outreach Program (YPOP). With Nicole’s support, Kim began to make a plan for her future.

The first step was housing. Nicole helped with applications and wrote letters of support so Kim and her baby could move into subsidized housing. But soon came the challenges of stretching a meagre budget to cover rent, groceries, and all of life’s necessities. YPOP provided grocery cards and bags of food to help. When Kim returned to school, YPOP helped secure a daycare space in The Cridge Children’s Services. The years that followed were a journey of survival, growth, and learning to cope with setbacks. Kim persevered, with YPOP by her side offering guidance whenever it was needed, sometimes just for a short period, and other times for longer stretches.

YPOP’s support has no set beginning, middle, or end. There was no single “final success” that ended Kim’s struggles or erased her need for a steady anchor as she worked to build a stable, healthy life. Kim knows that YPOP is always there for her, and that assurance keeps her grounded and hopeful about the future.

Today, Kim is proud of the parent and adult she has become. This June, she graduated with distinction from Camosun College’s Community Support Educational Assistant Program.

“As much as my graduation was a testament to my hard work, it is also testament to the amazing support you provide. So truly thank you for always being in my corner.” – Kim