The opening of Vancouver Island's groundbreaking Indigenous-specific trauma-informed daycare centre was celebrated at a special ceremony on Oct. 25.
First opened in September, the Hulitan Early Years Centre in Colwood offers 48 free childcare spaces to Indigenous families across the Capital Regional District.
Funded by the Aboriginal Head Start Association of British Columbia, the centre has 24 spaces for infants and toddlers, and 24 for children ages three to five.
The demand for the service is high, says Kendra Gage, executive director of Hulitan Family & Community Services Society.
B次元官网网址淲e're changing the trajectory of intergenerational trauma,B次元官网网址� she said about the centre, the first of its kind on the Island. B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 a place where we know our kids are gonna be able to grow, feel nurtured and loved, and then go into the school system, feeling safe in that system because they know who they are and where they come from.B次元官网网址�
For the newly opened daycare centre, a trauma-informed approach to childcare means adapting to the child's needs, rather than trying to change their behaviour.
B次元官网网址淲e're not asking the children to fit into our world, we're gonna pivot for them,B次元官网网址� said Gage.
And it appears to be working, with staff reporting the children have settled into a routine much faster than they have experienced before, says Gage.
B次元官网网址淲e have kids that don't want to leave, they actually cry going home because they don't want to leave,B次元官网网址� she says.
At the grand opening of the daycare centre, representatives from a number of stakeholders involved in the project, including the City of Colwood, the Ministry of Education and the Sooke School District, were in attendance, alongside staff members, families and First Nations matriarchs and chiefs.
B次元官网网址淣othing we do in life is done as an individual," said Gage in her opening speech. "ItB次元官网网址檚 done as a community, as a group and as a collective.B次元官网网址�
B次元官网网址淎nd if it wasn't for all the generosity, kindness and people that came together to make this centre happen, it wouldn't have happened.B次元官网网址�
During the ceremony, the Sooke School District was thanked for donating the land to the project, and for leasing the building for $1 a year, for the next 15 years.
B次元官网网址淲hich means all the money goes to the kids,B次元官网网址� said Gage.
The generosity of the City of Colwood was also noted, for providing a grant contribution amounting to $311,667.
B次元官网网址淔or me, this is one of those rare occasions where we see the importance and great value of connecting the past to the present for the benefit of the future,B次元官网网址� said Coun. Ian Ward on behalf of the city.
B次元官网网址淎 successful future depends on our ability to understand and accept the hard truths of our history book, personal history, as well as collectively," he continued. "To listen to each other's experiences and perspectives and learn from them to work together with humility, openness and respect.
"Ensuring our children grow up, not just learning about truth and reconciliation, but witnessing it in action so that they're rooted in the history and culture of the land we live on, the water that surrounds us, and the people who have been stewards of this land for centuries.B次元官网网址�
But it was the words of Brianna Bear, a member of the Songhees First Nation, invited to give the welcome to the territory at the event, which resonated most with the room packed full of supporters.
B次元官网网址淭ime and time again, we share that our children are our future and that it takes a community to raise a child,B次元官网网址� said Bear. B次元官网网址淲hen we raise children with the trauma-informed lens, it means so much more, because we're trying to not only pass on the healing to our children, but also the teachings.B次元官网网址�
"I think it's really important B次元官网网址hat we teach our children from a young age, we share the songs, we share the language as much as we can,B次元官网网址� she continued.
