For months now, OneThorold—comprised of members from local churches, social agencies, businesses, and individuals collaborating for the good of Thorold—has hosted speakers who help citizens in need.
This week, Ben Price from Youth Unlimited described the agency's mission to build better lives for at-risk youth.
Coincidentally, Hope Townsend—the speaker who preceded him—might be able to offer help.
As a youth centre director at Youth Unlimited, located at 226 Merritt Street, “Our mission is to see the hope and potential in every young person,” Price explained.
Youth Unlimited has had a presence in Niagara since the 1960s, and in St. Catharines since the 1990s.
“We’ve always provided a drop-in” program, he said, “and now we have a Young Moms program to help them get back to school or work. We also have pre-natal and help with homework programs. Over the years, we’ve drawn from Thorold Secondary School,” he said, identifying students in need and assisting them as well.
“Some people have trouble reading and writing, and the way they’ve been raised, we’re the first people in their lives that say, ‘You can do this.’ We build a rapport with them and help bring positive direction to their lives.”
“Some just need a safe place to hang out,” and attend the weekly Friday night drop-in programs from 7 to 10 p.m. for teens. “We have video games, a pool table,” and host theme nights, including Star Wars, Cake Boss, and Marvel Comics, Price added.
At the annual Thorold Car Show, held downtown each July, Youth Unlimited teens help sell 50/50 tickets, as well as “any events that teach them how to show up.”
“Some kids have fallen in the steps of their parents, where they weren’t inspired to do anything with their lives, work-wise, or finishing school. We are a faith-based organization, so we want to share hope and potential, but also have a practical follow-up, where we teach them how to save money,” he said, as one example.
“They have no work ethic instilled in them, so we want to bridge that gap. We are inching our way toward buying a coffee roaster,” he said, which would facilitate “hiring youth and teaching them how to dress, show up and be punctual. We don’t get much funding so we hope to get contracts in the community, selling coffee beans.”
Another project, called Youth Unlimited Catering, is in the works to “teach them to be dependable and employable,” said Price. “We came across a food trailer, and we’re trading sweat equity with the company we bought it from and we’re looking at getting contracts for popcorn, cotton candy,” and other food truck fare.
The group is also “in the midst of” acquiring a teaching kitchen, said Price, since working at Tim Horton’s and similar places are “an easy first job.” Once they gain confidence from working there, “we can provide a decent reference” for future employment, he added.
The agency’s challenges include securing funding, volunteers and staff, as well as “breaking the generational poverty mindset.”
After outlining services provided by the YMCA of Niagara Employment & Immigration Services office at the Pine Street Plaza, (next door to Foodland),Townsend suggested, “We can probably partner with workshops and help them develop skills.”
The Thorold branch, which opened in 2017, offers free services for students and other adults looking for work, as well as employers. They help with resumes, interview skills, computer and other job skills, all free of charge.
The St. Catharines YMCA location offers the Youth Job Connection program for people aged 15 to 29 who have barriers such as addictions, mental health issues, and “not coming from a supportive family,” said Townsend.
“We also do referrals,” she said. “If someone is struggling with groceries, we send them to Community Care,” or refer people for mental health counselling, if needed. “We develop relationships with employers so we can link people to them. We also provide monetary incentives to employers to offset the cost of training for employees. In our three offices combined, our success rate is 90 per cent” of clients going to school or work, with assistance from the YMCA’s various programs.
According to Townsend, “Transportation is the biggest struggle for individuals,” a common theme heard from social agencies at previous OneThorold meetings. “We can support them with bus passes and gas cards to get to work until they get their first paycheque, and provide interview clothes.”
“In Thorold, we have a lot of people who want to work at The Book Depot," she added. "We actually have a video now about it” so people can see what it’s like to work there.
She invited Thorold business owners to register with her.
“If you let us know you’re hiring an office administrator or a labourer, we can help you by screening the resumes, and send you only qualified people that meet those needs. We also host job fairs free at our sites or at your place of work.”
The agency also offers Smart Serve and Safe Food Handling training—both for a small fee—as well as free WHMIS, AODA, and other types of training.
More information is available at www.yfcstcatharines.com and at YNiagaraEmploymentServices.org.
