to our annual report
Transcription
to our annual report
AMCAL Family Services Annual Report April 1, 2012 - March 31 2013 Message from the Executive Director In 2011-212, we had a great year of program development, full of innovation and responsiveness to the community’s needs. Not only did we launch new programs, but we also revised current programs and expanded others. Due to those actions, this past year of 2012-2013 had seen us go through a significant period of growth. We have had a tremendously successful year experiencing growth in three key areas: an increase in demand for our programs and services, an increase in the number of people we have been able to help, and an increase in the number of colleagues on our team. AMCAL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013 The growth in families helped via our Counselling Programs and services was a staggering 36% last year, and our Supervised Visitation Program grew again for the fifth consecutive year at 25%. The prevention groups offered via our School Based Program has jumped by 38% this past year alone. Yes, AMCAL has once again risen to the challenge of an increased demand for services, all the while avoiding a waiting list all year. AMCAL has been able to meet the needs of the community head on. 1 I attribute this success to my dynamic, committed, dedicated and professional team. Each and every one of them works with our clients with integrity and respect, allowing us to continually respond to the ever present needs in our community. As well, I would like to underline the incredible work accomplished by the supportive and effective Board of Directors. They are a wonderful source of support, encouragement and assistance, and AMCAL would not have seen the past year of accomplishments without them. 2013-2014 will most definitely keep us busy and challenged, as we strive to continue to respond to the ever changing needs of our community. We look forward to the opportunity to do so. Heather Holmes, MBA, FICB Executive Director Your family matters…building healthy family relationships for over 30 years About AMCAL Family Services Mission Statement Vision Statement AMCAL Family Services’ team of professionals is committed to promoting and preserving healthy family relationships. AMCAL Family Services aims to be a leader in strengthening families and the community through innovation and responsiveness. AMCAL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013 As a community-based organization, we will anticipate, advocate and advance the role of families, thereby strengthening communities. 2 Values Nurturing: AMCAL believes in nurturing and promoting positive family relationships. Respect: AMCAL respects the choices of families and empowers them to take control of their family situation. Support: AMCAL recognizes the uniqueness of each family and seeks to understand and support the family in achieving healthier relationships. Integrity: AMCAL incorporates the highest level of integrity in its governance, administration, and programs, with the ultimate of goal of achieving the mission and vision of the organization. Collaboration: AMCAL believes in building collaborative partnerships with other community agencies, public institutions, schools and businesses to foster and enhance healthy family relationships. Your family matters…building healthy family relationships for over 30 years Residential Program The Residential Program is designed for teens between the ages of 12 and 17 years. The Residential Program is comprised of 14 weeks of family counselling, which include an eight-week (minimum), structured therapeutic program of respite care for the youth (maximum capacity: nine residents), as well as psycho-educational groups that address the needs of that population. The goal of the program is to provide a strengths-based, solution-focused approach that supports and assists families facing difficulties, and promotes family integration. AMCAL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013 The Residential Program has been very successful this past year and has allowed many teens to work on their relationships with their families and to deal with the important issues that brought them to AMCAL . While in the Residential Program, teens participate in skill-building groups to help them improve themselves and strengthen their relationships. This year, improvements were made to those skill-building groups in order to maximize the teens’ capacity for growth and development. These improvements were both easily implemented and well received. 3 An advantage of the Residential Program is that although the teens spend the week in Residence away from their families, they return home every weekend to practice the new skills they have learned. Every Monday evening is a recap of their successes and setbacks of the weekend, as well as a review of current goals they are setting for the upcoming week. In order to assist the teens in reflecting on their weekends independently, we revised the format by asking them to write their weekend successes and setbacks on Sunday at home. This gives them the opportunity to think in advance about what did and didn’t work, prior to meeting with the group. This year, our Anger Management Program was revised and fine-tuned to better meet the needs of the teens. It now gives the teens the opportunity to understand anger and its many faces, as well as offer them tools that would allow for improved and healthier communication. The ultimate message in this program is for the teens to connect their feelings with their behaviors then analyze the situation. The teens responded positively to the new program. They showed that they were engaged and often referred back to the tools they had learned during the sessions. The most frequent sources of referrals for families coming to the Residential Program have been through schools, former clients and other professionals. The areas of origin for incoming calls this year have been predominantly from Pierrefonds and Kirkland. The Residential team is heading towards another successful year in our program and it is exciting to see. The team is focused on the setting of appropriate goals for our teens and families in order for them all to succeed in our program. Kelly Angelis Residential Team Leader Your family matters…building healthy family relationships for over 30 years Residential Program Statistics Number of Individuals Served 140 120 100 80 60 40 20 0 132 124 104 2010-2011 2011-2012 2012-2013 AMCAL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013 Number of Information Meeting Requests 4 125 120 115 110 105 100 95 90 120 100 2010-2011 2011-2012 102 2012-2013 Number of Telephone Consultations 300 256 200 200 210 2011-2012 2012-2013 100 0 2010-2011 Your family matters…building healthy family relationships for over 30 years Summer Day Program The Summer Day Program, staffed by trained animators, operates on weekdays during June and July, when Residential teens are no longer in school. The objective of the program is to develop the social skills of the participants, as well as provide an opportunity for them to practice those skills. The Summer Day Program gives the youth in the Residential Program a positive summer experience, and encourages them to contribute to the local community through volunteer work. The Summer Day Program officially began on June 26, 2012, as the teens in the program had exams prior to this date. Throughout the teens’ exam period, many small activities were animated, such as organized sport activities, board games, card games and a trip to the local pool in the afternoon. There were eight teens in the program prior to the official start of the summer program, nine as of July 9 and seven by the end of the summer. AMCAL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013 Mondays: On Mondays, the teens were expected back at AMCAL for 9 am. If they were late, this would impact their activity of the day. For most of the summer, we did weekend reviews first thing in the morning and if a teen’s behavior was considered inappropriate, this could also impact their activity. Monday’s activities were mostly local, either at AMCAL or in the community and included mini-putt, going to the gym and Iron Chef day (a cooking competition). 5 The teens really enjoyed Iron Chef Day and it was beneficial because it involved elements of teamwork, communication, decision making and boundaries. The teens had to work as a team to choose what they wanted to make, as well as what ingredients to buy. The teens also practiced budgeting and were made aware of the prices of certain food items. Tuesdays: Tuesdays were educational days designed to help the teens learn new information. The activities consisted of going to the Redpath Museum, Macdonald Farm, the Biodome and the Canadian Centre for Architecture. Wednesdays: Wednesdays were intended to be volunteer days and throughout the summer we had two volunteer experiences. The first was at an Animal Shelter (The Animal Rescue Network) where the teens were part of the cleaning team. They cleaned litter boxes, replenished cat food and water, swept, washed floors and did laundry. All the teens really enjoyed the experience and expressed that they got a lot out of it, especially one teen, who went back to volunteer on her own time. The second was at Seniors Residence (Viva Life) where the teens socialized and played games with the residents. After this enriching experience, two of the teens expressed that they wanted to continue volunteering on their own time. Prior to volunteering at Viva Life, the teens were prepared with a list of conversational topics and questions to ask the residents. The staff also went over how to conduct themselves in that setting. Your family matters…building healthy family relationships for over 30 years Summer Day Program (continued) Thursdays: Thursdays were the biggest and most exciting for the teens, as the activities were focused on entertainment and special activities. Those activities were bowling, Cap-St-Jacques beach, Laser Quest, jet boating and Super Aqua Club. Fridays: Fridays consisted of activities at AMCAL and included, tie-dye, sports, making CV’s as well as group and self-reflecting activities. During the self-reflecting activities, we gave the teens a chance to let their peers know what they liked about them and what they feel they could change or work on. Towards the end of the day, the teens would prepare for the weekend and get their belongings organized. AMCAL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013 Alexandra Urban-Desnoyers and Jennifer Davis Summer Day Program Animators 6 Your family matters…building healthy family relationships for over 30 years Outreach Family Counseling Program As part of our mission to preserve healthy family relationships between parents and children, AMCAL offers the Outreach Family Counseling Program. This program responds to the needs of families who have not identified the Residential Program as necessary for their family situation, or is offered when there is a waiting list for the Residential Program. AMCAL thus provides support during a family crisis and/or helps families come to terms with the eventual necessity of placing their child in the Residential Program. The Outreach Family Counseling Program also responds to younger children in elementary school whose acting-out behavior is impeding their success at school or causing stress to the family at home. Families that use the Pre-Adolescent Outreach services are usually those who are not eligible for the Families First Program (described later in this report). AMCAL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013 Family Workers provide support and guidance to help clients identify issues of concern, and suggest concrete strategies to the family to address these concerns. If necessary, at the end of the four-week Outreach Family Counseling contract, families can engage the services of AMCAL for a second contract (maximum 3 contracts/family), or the family worker may suggest an appropriate community resource. The goal for the 2012-2013 Outreach Family Counseling Program was to expand our program to off-island families. We were able to attain this by reaching out to families in Hudson by providing a parenting group in collaboration with Westwood Senior High in Hudson. In 2013-2014, we hope to further our relationship with off-island families and are looking at developing a program that would touch all the different aspects of family life. Delia Noel Residential and Family Work Coordinator 7 Your family matters…building healthy family relationships for over 30 years Outreach Family Counselling Program Statistics Number of Individuals Served 100 80 60 40 20 80 Teens 52 40 4 Pre-teens 16 8 0 2010-2011 2011-2012 2012-2013 Number of Information Meetings for Pre-Teens AMCAL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013 2.5 8 2 2 2 2 2010-2011 2011-2012 2012-2013 1.5 1 0.5 0 Number of Telephone Requests 15 14 12 10 7 5 0 2010-2011 2011-2012 2012-2013 Your family matters…building healthy family relationships for over 30 years Emerging Adults Program Emerging Adults was launched in September of 2011, and in the last year and a half, the program has gained recognition in the community. Calls have come in from as far as St-Jerome, requesting access to this program. The program is aimed at families dealing with the transition phase of adult children still living in the family home. The goal of the program is to help develop a long term plan with the family members that will be productive both for the parents and the emerging adult. The program is geared towards the 18-25 age group of young adults currently living in the family home. AMCAL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013 The program takes place over the course of 9 weeks with an initial assessment meeting done by the Residential Coordinator. The family meetings are broken down into groupings of family members (just parents, just the emerging adult and the whole family). The family meetings take place between Monday and Friday from 8am-6pm. The family meetings with just the emerging adult can be conducted outside AMCAL, such as at a coffee shop or at school. This is to be determined by the worker and the client. Meetings with the parents and the whole family can be conducted in the family home or the AMCAL residence. Referrals for the program have come through the CLSC, professionals in the field, Direction of Youth Protection, schools and through members of the community. The project is considered an ongoing success as we were able to support 20 individuals in our second year. The program goal for the coming year is to continue informing the community that the program is available to those in need of the service. Delia Noel Residential and Family Work Coordinator 9 Your family matters…building healthy family relationships for over 30 years Emerging Adults Program Statistics Number of Individuals Served 25 20 20 15 12 10 5 0 AMCAL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013 2011-2012 10 2012-2013 Number of Information Meetings 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 7 3 2011-2012 2012-2013 Your family matters…building healthy family relationships for over 30 years Supervised Visitation Program The Supervised Visitation Program provides a safe and neutral setting for parents and children who are separated, to exercise their access rights. The program’s goal is to help preserve the parent-child bond. There are three existing components to the Supervised Visitation Program: Supervised Visitation Program - Batshaw: This is a contractual agreement with Batshaw Youth and Family Centres. Under this agreement AMCAL supervises families who are under the Department of Youth-Protection. AMCAL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013 Supervised Visitation Program - Fee-for-Service: Visitation services are offered on a fee-for-service basis to Centre Jeunesse de Montreal, Laurentide, Outaouais and Monteregie in Quebec, The Canadian Mental Health Association and The Children’s Aid Society of Ontario. Services are also provided to families requiring supervised visitation services that are not presently under youth protection, but have an agreement or court order for visitation. 11 Supervised Visitation Program - Supervision des Droits d’Accès: This is a contractual agreement between AMCAL and the Ministry of Health and Social Services. AMCAL supervises families who received a Superior Court order for supervision of access with their child. During this past year, the Supervised Visitation Program team grew from six to nine employees. The team now consists of two Coordinators, (one full time and one part time) a Team Leader/ Supervisor, and six other visitation supervisors. The Supervised Visitation Program team worked with 156 families in the three visitation programs we offer and there was an overall increase of 30 families compared to the previous year, representing a 24% growth. At the annual Supervised Visitation Program Children’s Christmas party, 64 children were provided with new snow suits and a gift. Thank you to the Via-Rail team for donating snow suits, as well as Clyde & Co. and Barlow Lyde & Gilbert for donating presents. The Hudson Dinner Club hosted and ensured the party’s overall success and the AMCAL team and their families organized and managed the party. The goals of the Supervised Visitation Program are two-fold. First, we are looking to place an increased emphasis on training for the team and second, to expand physically in order to service more families. Sherman Blunte Supervised Visitation Program Coordinator Your family matters…building healthy family relationships for over 30 years Supervised Visitation Program Statistics SVP Fee-for-Service Visits 700 600 500 400 300 200 100 0 617 510 377 # of Families 300 289 211 # of Visits # of Hours 21 26 30 2010-2011 2011-2012 2012-2013 SVP Bashaw Contract 2654 AMCAL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013 3000 2500 12 2530 2151 2000 1500 1000 1437 1380 1211 # of Families # of Visits # of Hours 500 0 83 97 86 2010-2011 2011-2012 2012-2013 SDA Contract 600 500 400 300 200 100 0 483 427 # of Families 236 159 1 5 10 2010-2011 # of Visits # of Hours 14 29 2011-2012 2012-2013 Your family matters…building healthy family relationships for over 30 years Families First Program For the past 14 years, through a contract with the CSSS (Centres de Sante et de Services Sociaux) Pierrefonds, AMCAL has provided home-based family support and intervention to identified elementary school children in the CSSS territory. This multidisciplinary approach recognizes that the resolution of children’s difficulties in school may be related to addressing issues of family dynamics in the home. AMCAL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013 The Families First Program is funded through Sante Publique and is designed for families who are either currently accessing social support or who cannot afford to pay for services. The program is offered at no cost to the school or family. The 10-session program includes: a classroom observation so the family worker can experience first-hand the issue the child and school personnel have identified; six home visits to support the parents and provide strategies and tools to assist in the child’s academic success; and regular meetings and conferences with school personnel involved with the child, to discuss progress and identify further needs of the child and family. If necessary, at the conclusion of the program, referrals are made to other community services. 13 This year, through continuous efforts to ensure that Families First referrals were received and serviced in a timely manner, ongoing communication with school personnel and contact with the same resource person throughout the entire school year, we were able to solidify the relationship between school personnel and AMCAL. As well, efforts were made to develop relationships with schools of the CSSS Pierrefonds territory that had yet to benefit from the Families First program. As a result, AMCAL was able to offer services and increase their visibility to a population who was less familiar with us. Efforts to increase the quality of the relationships between AMCAL and school personnel of the CSSS Pierrefonds territory were reflected in the high number of referrals from schools all over the territory. Several new referrals were made from the French sector reflecting efforts to reach last year’s goals to increase the services offered to the francophone community. Families report a high level of satisfaction with the services offered. Families appreciate the collaboration of the school personnel, with an outside resource, to provide them with the support needed for their child and themselves. Many of the parents emphasize feeling more competent as parents and appreciative of the tools they acquired throughout the duration of the 10 weeks. School principals and staff also report a high level of satisfaction with the services offered. Their appreciation of the service is the result of the speed at which referrals were serviced, weekly communication with the family worker and changes in the children and families referred. In the upcoming school year, the goal is to maintain the solid relationships established with the schools and continue to work on developing new ones. As a result of changing school personnel, it is important to maintain regular communication to ensure that schools continue to use the Families First services. Delia Noel Residential and Family Work Coordinator Your family matters…building healthy family relationships for over 30 years Families First Program Statistics Number of Families Served 30 29 28 29 28 27 26 25 25 24 AMCAL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013 23 2010-2011 2011-2012 2012-2013 14 Your family matters…building healthy family relationships for over 30 years School-Based Program For over a decade, in partnership with Sante Publique and the CSSS Pierrefonds, AMCAL has provided school-based services to the Lester B. Pearson and Marguerite-Bourgeoys School Boards. These services are well-known and highly regarded among AMCAL ’s community partners. The exciting program improves the social skills that elementary-aged children need to stay balanced and content in their lives, allowing them to interact positively and effectively with those around them. The “Social Skills a la Carte” program continues to be interactive, dynamic, fun and engaging, with the continued direction of teaching positive character traits and essential life skills. The program strives to create a school, family and social life, where all children feel safe and comfortable, where conflicts are resolved in a kind and respectful manner, where all children are included, and kindness and caring rule. AMCAL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013 The program offers a simple 12-item menu of skills from which directors of the schools can choose. This permits directors to ensure that AMCAL’s sessions complement the priorities they have identified as necessary in their schools. The directors have the luxury of selecting any of the skills for any grade, since the materials for each topic have been adapted for all levels. The program comprises eight 45-minute sessions, with the following content included in every session: 15 The Appetizer: an ice-breaker activity to get the children’s attention, and provide them a quick few moments to “change gears” from their regular studies. The Main Course: the activity that will teach the selected social skill (e.g. a game, story, worksheet, interactive group discussion, role-play). The Dessert: a quick debriefing session, validating that the children have “taken something” from the session. The continuous evaluation process which the facilitators complete with the schools, serves as an important aid for the program. These evaluations help with the improvements that the coordinator makes, to ensure that all teachers feel supported in helping their students. The schools are very pleased with the idea that their opinions are important to us and are used to make changes to the program. Our coordinator is on her fourth round of the school-based program and her dynamic, positive and compassionate personality facilitates a great relationship with all administration and students. There was the addition of a new French group facilitator, Mohammad Saïd, who has done a spectacular job in creating amazing connections with various French schools in the MargueriteBourgeoys School Board, as well as having a love for leading our youth to positivity. Rachel Edwards School-Based Program Coordinator Your family matters…building healthy family relationships for over 30 years School-Based Program Statistics Number of Groups Served 140 120 100 80 60 40 20 0 115 83 64 2010-2011 2011-2012 2012-2013 Number of Students Served 2782 3000 AMCAL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013 2500 16 2000 1871 2075 1500 1000 500 0 2010-2011 2011-2012 2012-2013 Number of Schools Serviced 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 13 2010-2011 14 12 2011-2012 2012-2013 Your family matters…building healthy family relationships for over 30 years Our Place Program The Our Place program was created eight years ago to meet the needs of young parents and recent immigrant populations living in the CLSC Lac St-Louis territory. Our Place is funded through a grant from Sante Publique, in association with the CSSS Lac St-Louis. It offers a “dropin” program of education and social support to an “at risk” population of parents (e.g. recent immigrants, or parents who have not completed high school), who may be coping with isolation, depression, substance abuse issues, mental health problems and limited parental support. All participants are required to develop a “Life Plan,” to help them work toward the major life goals they have identified. The program also aims to assist parents with parenting skills and increase their children’s socialization skills. The program operates three days a week at an off-site location, at a Delmar Avenue apartment in Pointe-Claire. AMCAL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013 At Our Place, we continue to maintain very close ties with our community partners. The West Island Citizen’s Advocacy “Bread Basket” staff animates our much-appreciated weekly collective kitchens. From September to January, Alan Hennessy joined us as animator with many years of culinary experience. Amy Van Eslande, has since taken on that role. The participants have learned about cooking with creativity, nutrition, team work and structure. The “Bread Basket” team continues to use the apartment on a bi-monthly basis for their own collective kitchens, as well as for occasional meetings. 17 The Supervised Visitation Program continues using the Delmar apartment on Saturdays for their clients and this arrangement has been working well for all. A new organization that works with fathers called “Pere a Coeur”, has started occasionally using the apartment and some of our dads have participated in this group. The West Island Women’s Center animates weekly arts and crafts workshops which focus on skill development for the children, and encouragement for the moms to reinforce these skills at home. The animator for this program, Linda Roach, has a great approach and the moms and children look forward to her visits. The children this year ranged from 2 weeks to 5 years old, so the emphasis was on age-appropriate development and skills required to function in a day care or kindergarten. We had two bake sales this year to supplement our program: One as our annual Christmas sale held in November raising $500, and a second sale was held in April to raise money for our summer activities,. This allowed us to visit the Ecomuseum, ZigZagZoo, take a boat ride on the Lachine canal, have a treat at Dairy Queen, go to the St-Zotique and Ile-Bizard beaches, visit the water park in Dorval and Centennial Park in D.D.O. We also took a day trip to Lachute to visit our retired nurse from the CLSC and picnicked on nice sunny days. In the fall we went apple picking at Quinn’s farm and everyone and participated in the West Island Community Shares walk. We continue to try and discover activities with minimal entrance fees. Your family matters…building healthy family relationships for over 30 years Our Place Program (continued) The tenants in the Delmar building continue to leave generous donations of clothing and toys at our door. As well, for a third year in a row, Sue Simatos from John Rennie High School coordinated Christmas baskets for fifteen of our families. They provided food, toys and gift cards and all the high school classes involved received thank you letters from the parents and children. We had our annual Christmas party at the CSSS where we provided presents to 11 moms, 5 dads and 14 children. Each mom received a surprise gift bag from Avon and we received very generous donations from Loblaw Kirkland and Curves Beaconsfield, which made Christmas 2012 one of the best. Each mom and staff member was also given a souvenir DVD of our year spent together. The kids just love to watch themselves on TV! To start the new year, we had one birth in January and are expecting another in June and one more in July. In January, John Abbott College stagiaire Yulia Izmegli joined us and has been involved in the Our Place, Supervised Visitation and Families First programs. Educator Rachel Edwards was replaced by Jennifer Davis, who has now been with AMCAL for over 5 years. We look forward to another full year of learning, growing and fun in the Our Place program. AMCAL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013 Diane Marsland Our Place Program Coordinator 18 Your family matters…building healthy family relationships for over 30 years Our Place Program Statistics Number of Parents Served 25 21 18 20 17 15 Mothers 10 5 3 Fathers 5 3 0 AMCAL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013 2010-2011 2011-2012 2012-2013 Number of Children Served 40 36 32 26 30 20 10 0 2010-2011 2011-2012 2012-2013 19 Your family matters…building healthy family relationships for over 30 years Anger Management and Conflict Resolution Program AMCAL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013 The Anger Management and Conflict Resolution Program is an eight week program held on Tuesday nights for teens aged 12-17 years. This program aims to assist teens in developing and maintaining positive relationships with others, as well as using effective coping strategies when dealing with difficult situations. The program helps teens identify that anger is a normal and healthy emotion and that it can be controlled. The program explores a number of different topics that aim to educate and give teens skills they can use in their daily lives. The group discusses what anger is, where is comes from, and also explores how to identify personal triggers and body signals. Different communication and conflict resolution skills, as well as goal setting are also explored. This past year, the program had one facilitator with a total of nine clients. It is a feebased program offered to the community from September to July and can accommodate a maximum of eight participants at a time. The school Anger Management and Conflict Resolution Program is a new option of the Anger Management and Conflict Resolution Program started this past year. We noticed that there were many teens who were interested and needed the Anger Management and Conflict Resolution Program but couldn’t participate for a number of reasons (be it transportation or financial issues). In response to this situation, AMCAL thought to implement our program in the various high schools around Montreal, who requested the services. This gave the high schools an additional resource for their students, while alleviating the travel and expense attached to the Anger Management Program run at AMCAL for the participants. The school Anger Management and Conflict Resolution Program offered to the schools is the same offering to the community on Tuesday nights at AMCAL. It is run at school during a class period and like the program run at AMCAL, we can accommodate a total of eight participants per group. During the first year of this offering, we were able to run a total of six groups in four high schools. Our goal for 2013-2014 is to continue to offer this program to high schools as well as community groups and any other organizations who work with teens. Looking forward, there are a number of schools already expressing interest in implementing this group in their schools for the upcoming school year. Jennifer Davis Group Facilitator 20 Your family matters…building healthy family relationships for over 30 years 21st Century Parents Group The Parenting in the 21st Century series of workshops took on a different approach this year. While the workshops were still facilitated by Susan Layne, Family Worker, the locations of the groups varied. We had the opportunity to team up with Westwood Senior High and Beaconsfield High School to facilitate a group directly in their schools. In addition, we delivered two groups at the AMCAL Residence. Each group consisted of four sessions, with an average attendance of six participants, including both two-parent and single-parent households. Parents expressed feeling overwhelmed by the requirements of parenting and wondered why their own parents were able to have much more control over them than they have over their own children. Almost all participants talked about respecting their parents and feeling this was currently lacking from their own children. Most importantly, they were happy to come to a place where they realized they were not alone, and where many other parents were experiencing the same, or similar, issues. AMCAL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013 The feedback from these 21st Century Parent groups has been positive: parents value the concrete skills and ideas given and many have asked that there be more sessions, as well as more workshops focused on other topics related to parenting. Last year’s goals included developing a second group and delivering the groups in schools to make it easier for parents to gain access to the program. Proudly, we are able to say we were able to reach both of these goals. For 2013-2014, we would like to increase the number of schools offering this program and develop relationships with elementary schools and helping them provide access to the muchneeded tools to the parents. Delia Noel Residential and Family Work Coordinator 21 Your family matters…building healthy family relationships for over 30 years AMCAL Board of Directors 2012-2013 President Glenn Dore Past President Karen Turnbull Vice Presidents Angela Di Virgilio John Deakin AMCAL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013 Treasurer Derek Walton Secretary Leisa Joy Directors Alison Birss Suzanne Charette Michael Hiles Marc Lalonde Margot McCulloch Mike Regan 22 Your family matters…building healthy family relationships for over 30 years AMCAL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013 AMCAL Team 23 Jeff Andrews Child Care Worker Kelly Angelis Team Leader, Residential Program Faye Assee Family Worker Maggie Bergeron Supervised Visitation Program Supervisor Sherman Blunte Coordinator, Supervised Visitation Program Bianca Carrara Supervised Visitation Program Supervisor Valerie Collin Family Worker Jennifer Davis Child Care Worker Margaret Dodge Overnight Supervisor, Residential Program Rachel Edwards Coordinator, School-Based Program Heather Holmes Executive Director Katrina Kavalersky Financial Coordinator Susan Layne Family Worker Alan Macfarlane Clinical Director Diane Marsland Coordinator, Our Place Program Amanda McCollam Supervised Visitation Program Supervisor Delia Noel Coordinator, Residential Program and Family Work Nick Pare Family Worker Laura Patch Team Leader, Supervised Visitation Program Mohammad Said School-Based Facilitator Stephanie Salagan Family Worker Gayle Swift Supervised Visitation Program Supervisor Leticia Yansen Family Worker Your family matters…building healthy family relationships for over 30 years Community Partners Each and every year, we work to strengthen our community partnerships and connections, and collaborate with a wide variety of helping professionals, local community organizations, and government agencies. In order to nurture these relationships, and to raise awareness in the community about AMCAL’s always evolving programs and services, the Executive Director and the entire AMCAL team regularly participate in numerous events and meetings that enhance our presence in the community’s business, education and non-profit sectors. AMCAL also shares knowledge by organising presentations and workshops with individuals and groups in the Montreal area that offer resources for youth and families. In addition, throughout the year, The Chronicle and Cité-Nouvelles included 19 articles about AMCAL events, as well as interviews with the AMCAL Executive Director and staff. AMCAL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013 In 2012-2013, the Executive Director and the AMCAL staff were pleased to work with the following helping professionals, community organizations and government agencies, and attended or organized the following courses and seminars: 24 Agence de la Sante et des Services Sociaux de Montreal AJOI Batshaw Youth and Family Centres Central Parents’ Committee (CPC) Conference workshop: 21st Century Families (March 2013) CSSS Lac St. Louis CSSS Pierrefonds Comite de travail pour venir en aide aux jeunes 6-18 ayant des problemes en sante mental Comite Services de Droits d’Acces Montreal et l’Ouest de L’ïle Commission scolaire Marguerite-Bourgeoys Community Resource Centre (CRC) Dollard des Ormeaux Old-Timers’ Hockey Association presentation Jean XXIII Community Services kiosk John Abbott College presentation (Feb. 2013) LBPSB Guidance Counselors (April 2012) LBPSB Open Houses (Sept. 2012—Nov. 2012) LPBSB Partnership day (Nov. 2012) Newspaper interviews, the Chronicle&Cité-Nouvelles (April 2012—March 2013) Pointe-Claire Old-Timers’ Hockey Club presentation (Dec. 2012) PsyMontreal (July 2012) QPAT (November 2012) Sante Publique Sexpressions workshop (Sept. 2012) Your family matters…building healthy family relationships for over 30 years AMCAL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013 Community Partners (continued) Table de Concertation de Dependance de l’Ouest de L’ïle Table de Concertation Enfance – Famille – Jeunesse de l’Ouest de L’ïle Comite Intersectoriel 0-12 de l’Ouest de L’ïle Comite Intersectoriel 12-24 de l’Ouest de L’ïle Table de Quartier de Sud de l’Ouest de L’ïle Temple Committee Against Human Trafficking workshop (TCAHT) Vanier CEGEP Career Day (2012) Vanier, McGill and LaSalle College interns (May 2012—March 2013) Villes de : BaieD’Urfe Beaconsfield Dollard des Ormeaux Dorval Kirkland Pointe-Claire Pierrefonds-Roxboro Wellness Fair (Feb.2013) West Island Chamber of Commerce networking luncheons (Fall 2012) West Island Community Shares Salon des Vins 2013 West Island Community Shares Distribution Ceremony (April 2012) Women’s Links golf tournament 2012 Young Women Aware (May 2012) 25 Your family matters…building healthy family relationships for over 30 years Fundraising Through our various events in 2012-2013, AMCAL succeeded in raising over $190,700. Once again, we were very pleased to receive support from West Island Community Shares. Due to their amazing efforts, our contribution increased to $67,000. AMCAL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013 Source 26 Target 2013-2014 Actual 2012-2013 Actual 2011-2012 Actual 2010-2011 West Island Community Shares $67,000 $67,000 $63,000 $61,000 Donations $44,000 $41,583 $35,242 $45,712 MNA’s $4,000 $400 $3,000 $3,000 Municipalities $21,000 $20,200 $20,000 $20,300 Golf $41,000 $39,174 $36,735 $33,161 Taste of AMCAL $20,000 $19,500 $19,580 $22,156 Santa Run $3,000 $2,846 N/A N/A TOTAL $200,000 $190,703 $177,557 $185,329 Our major initiatives this year were: 11th Annual Family Matters Golf Tournament: Once again, this fundraising event was hugely successful. We had a spectacular day and the event was well attended. We raised over $39,000 which is more than any other year. These funds are used to help the agency to continue to offer crucial services to the community. Our next edition of the golf tournament will once again be held at the Beaconsfield Golf Club on Monday, September 9, 2013. First Annual Santa Run: Together with the “Coop des Bons Voisins”, we initiated a new fundraiser. Participants came out on a chilly December morning to run/walk a designated course around the Pointe Claire village. Those who braved the course were treated to hot chocolate and goodies at the finish line. The event forged a good partnership for two local community organizations and raised $2,800 for AMCAL . We hope to build on this event and make it an annual occurrence. Home Depot Renovation Project: AMCAL was fortunate to be the recipient of a Home Depot grant in the amount of $5,000. This resulted in an amazing volunteer effort from the staff of the Pointe Claire Home Depot store and many friends and staff of AMCAL . Over a four-day period in June, the volunteers painted all three floors of the Residence. It was a huge undertaking but the transformation of the interior of the building was amazing. Your family matters…building healthy family relationships for over 30 years Fundraising (continued) Thank you to our volunteer committee members who dedicated time and effort: Golf Committee AMCAL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013 John Deakin Andrea Derome Glenn Dore Rachel Edwards Heather Holmes Leisa Joy Brian McGowan Suzanne Yacovitch Taste of AMCAL Committee Andrea Derome Paul Gagne Heather Holmes Leisa Joy Marc Lalonde Brian McGowan 27 Your family matters…building healthy family relationships for over 30 years Our Generous Donors AMCAL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013 We are very fortunate to receive support from many different venues in our community. A big THANK YOU to our major donors! The following is a list of event partners and donors who supported AMCAL in 2012-2013: 28 Association des Artistes de Beaconsfield BBB (Better Business Bureau) Foundation Beaconsfield Golf Club Beaconsfield Old-Timers’ Hockey Club Borden Ladner Gervais Brian Simmons Camcoat Industries Canada Metal Capital Wellington West Construction Broccolini Inc. Dale Parizeau Morris Mackenzie Inc. Daniel Urbas Deakin & Associates Derek Walton Eric T. Webster Foundation Estate of Linda Morris Financiere Banque Nationale Fred T. Pye & Associates Geoffrey Kelley Glenn Dore Great West Life Assurance Company Home Depot Canada Foundation IBM Canada Ltd Investors Group Jarislowsky Fraser Limited Jeff Ayoub Kirkland Old-Timers’ Hockey Tournament Ligue de hockey adulte de Pierrefonds Le Panier Les Industries CamCoat Inc. MacDonald Cartier Investments Inc. Matt Pugsley Mick Coombes Mizgala & Cie Mohammed Kanwal Family Foundation Neil Haboush Pathonic Foundation PG Green Pointe-Claire Old-Timers’ Hockey Tournament Pugsley Capital Inc. Pyrogenesis Raymond and Susan Dore Silhouette Flooring St. Edmund’s Social Action Committee St. Thomas a Becket Catholic Church Susan Macgowan Teff Administration Vacances Air Canada Via Rail Cities of: Baie-d’Urfe Beaconsfield Dollard-des-Ormeaux Kirkland Pierrefonds-Roxboro Pointe-Claire West Island Community Shares Windermere Capital Women's Links Your family matters…building healthy family relationships for over 30 years 26 AMCAL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013 Testimonial “AMCAL is the place where we learn how to live our lives. The whole AMCAL team is always ready to support us. When I started to come to AMCAL I had two kids and I was alone… my home Country is Pakistan so I have no family in Canada. My only support in Canada was AMCAL ….especially Diane. AMCAL taught me lots of things… such as how to take care of my children, how to complete my education and how to create and keep a budget. The children and I visit “Our Place” three times a week. We eat there, our kids play with toys, enjoy music, learn how to paint and do arts and crafts and the children are taught social skills. For me, AMCAL is my family. They are always ready to support me. I trust them. Whenever I feel depressed, I share my feelings with Diane. She always gives me good advice. I am very thankful to God for giving us the very helpful organization AMCAL .” 29 Mom with two children who frequents the Our Place Program Your family matters…building healthy family relationships for over 30 years AMCAL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013 Testimonial 30 “When my son was two years old, he was taken by Youth Protection. I was petrified. I was lost. I will never forget that day. Then I learned about AMCAL . AMCAL was the place I was to see my son for Supervised Visits. When I went there, I met professional people…people who cared about me and my situation. They reassured me and didn’t judge me as so many others had. I so desperately needed to feel like someone was “with me”, and AMCAL did just that. From that day, I have been a client of AMCAL . I come to see my son every week at AMCAL , and the supervisors have always treated me with respect. AMCAL was there to help me in my worst situation, and I will never forget that. I found support at AMCAL . They were there for me.” Mom using the Supervised Visitation Program Your family matters…building healthy family relationships for over 30 years AMCAL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013 Testimonial “I learned a lot while being at AMCAL . AMCAL is there to support you with your problems. Don’t get me wrong…you have to work hard when you’re in the program! At AMCAL you can express how you feel and I liked that. I learned so many lessons. I was ready to change. I was ready to do what I needed to do. The AMCAL program worked for me… because I made it work. I changed many behaviors and now I feel a lot better. I get along better with my parents; I talk to them more than I used to. I am way more behaved with my parents. I feel more secure inside of me. I used to always feel sorry for myself all the time, but now I have changed. I now know how to handle my anger and how to deal with it. I also don’t do drugs anymore. For all these things, I thank AMCAL . I thank them for their support and their help in getting me to achieve my goals. I feel so much better now. I am happier inside.” 31 15 year old teen finishing the Residential Program Your family matters…building healthy family relationships for over 30 years AMCAL ANNUAL REPORT 2012-2013 32 AMCAL Family Services 7 Ste. Anne St., Pointe Claire, Quebec, H9S 4P6 Tel.: 514-694-3161 ● Fax: 514-694-1109 ● afs@AMCAL .ca www.AMCAL .ca Your family matters…building healthy family relationships for over 30 years