Allan Yu
When the challenge of COVID-19 and social distancing presented itself in March of 2020, our Care for Newcomer (CNC) Project was left unsure as to how they could continue to serve our community. This was a challenge they had never faced.
Feedback from parents indicated that they found themselves at a loss with no school, children home all day unable to go outside, along with many other factors. Upon examining these factors, it was determined there was a need for virtual assistance which CNC was determined to provide.
The CNC team created a master list of all clients who had utilized CNC services over the past two years and reached out to them via phone and email offering Achēv’s support.
As the first SPO in Ontario to deliver CNC virtual services, it was determined that our mandate would be to provide socialization for the children, educational concepts and reinforcement, creative exploration and a much-needed break for parents. One of the first endeavours was to organize the distribution of craft kits to our client’s homes. Parents emailed their requests and CNC prepared 67 customized kits for the children basing the contents of kits on age-appropriate games and crafts. Staff delivered 67 kits to Brampton, Burlington, Malton, Milton, Mississauga, and Oakville over a 3-day period in the first week of June. The feedback was positive, instantaneous, and it was truly amazing how very appreciative both children and parents were to receive the craft kits from CNC/ACHĒV!
The CNC team also collaborated and developed a bi-weekly calendar of virtual activities for children kicking it off with a home-made sock puppet show written and performed by CNC staff. It was delivered on May 22nd and approximately 100 clients registered for this first and very successful event. Children’s activities take place on ZOOM every Tuesday and Thursday afternoon and range from crafts and games to dancing, music, and even story time written by CNC staff. Registrations so far are close to 40 for each event. Many more innovative ideas are being explored every day and the team is excited to bring them to fruition.
Feedback has been extremely encouraging and the team is excited to continue building this virtual concept during this challenging time!
Achēv offers free weekly events and workshops to help you achieve your employment and career goals. Visit our Events Calendar to see all of our upcoming events.
