Our Kids Count Community Development Organization
Program Feature – Our Kids Count, Community Development Organization
Our Kids Count aims to provide relief and to reduce the impact of poverty on individuals, children, youth and their families. Their mission is to empower individuals to build stronger families and inclusive communities by enhancing peoples lives through personal growth and development. All of their programs are FREE.
The organization was created in Thunder Bay and has been offering services to individuals and families for over 25 years. It started with running a few drop-in programs and kitchen programs for families. The program was developed from a community development model for planning which has allowed it to expand to what it is today. They do a lot of door knocking and outreach in their community to get people involved. Our Kids Count now has four locations across Thunder Bay and operates the local Big Brothers Big Sisters and Roots of Empathy Programs.
Our Kids Count community development model directly involves and engages participants in all levels of program planning, decision-making, action, community mobilization and evaluation – they plan programs based on the direct needs identified by the community and they believe this has been key to their success. They are strategic in where they have set up sites, always trying to provide services in communities that need them most and to meet the needs of families in the areas they live. To do this, they have a Planning Team which consists of volunteers who live in the communities they operate in, who share theirs and others needs and help guide how Our Kids Count can best serve the families in their neighbourhoods. Their staff also sit on committees throughout Thunder Bay to ensure they are aware of what is happening and support other programs.
Margaret Hajdinjak, their Program Manager has been with Our Kids Count for over 20 years and believes their programs develop self-esteem, peer leadership, and support, and is flexible, economical and accessible to everyone. Our Kids Count runs many programs around various areas of community concern, specifically centering on food security, mental health, pre/post natal supports, access to childcare, parenting and informational workshops. A few programs they currently offer include Community Kitchens and a Pre/Postnatal Kitchen; where individuals can come and make a meal for their whole family, once a week, for 8-weeks. They offer a Family Group once a week where families can come together and share a dinner and activities with their families. They also offer multiple Kids in Community Kitchens (K.I.C.K) programs, where children learn to cook and bring home a meal for their families. Counselling is offered at two of their sites, along with Home Visiting, and weekly workshops where individuals and families have a chance to learn something new. Short Term Child Care is also available for families to attend. A peer led Post Partum support group is also well attended twice a month. They offer outings in the summer as well as a yearly camping trip that families can attend. They offer a monthly breakfast which serves over 200 individuals each month, as well as quarterly community dinners. As well, they also have an emergency food cupboard that runs at two locations in the city every Thursday afternoon where people can access food for their families.
“I was one of those parents that benefited from the cake decorating workshop. I have a large family, and birthdays can be expensive… Buying a custom cake from a grocery store is just not feasible for me. Using the knowledge and skill I learned from this workshop, I felt confident that I could make a tasty custom cake for my kid. And I did. The cake I made matched any store-bought cake I could have gotten for a fraction of the price.”
The staff at Our Kids Count feel lucky to watch many of their families grow over many years. They see parents when they are expecting, then get to meet the baby and see them grow – even when parents may no longer use the services, they send their children to them to learn to cook. Families make real connections, and they get to see more confident and less isolated parents, families and individuals who have built strong relationships while attending Our Kids Count.
The biggest challenge at Our Kids Count has been consistent, sustainable funding. Our Kids Count operates with only 48% core funding, which means they rely on grants, donations, and constant fundraising to make up the remaining 52% of our budget. This means they often operate short staffed, and must depend on their strong, resilient team to be constantly shifting to meet the needs of their community.
They are currently in the process of re-evaluating their strategic priorities and are working on increasing their sustainable funding as they are in a period of growth and change. For the last few years their strategic plan has focused on 1) Enhancing their Community Development Model, 2) Creating and Implementing Better Evaluation Tools for their Program and Services and 3) Focusing on Organizational Development. They have met most of their goals in these areas and are proud of their achievements.
Our Kids Count are excited for the future and to set goals that will ensure they are fulfilling their mission and want to share the voice of the North with other communities. www.ourkidscount.ca
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