PROVIDING SUPPORT & SERVICES TO MEET THE DIVERSE DEVELOPMENTAL NEEDS OF PEOPLE WITHIN OUR COMMUNITY

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      • 13 APRIL 2023
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      BetterStreet Founder Visits Brantford Tiny Homes Working Circle

      BetterStreet Founder Visits Brantford Tiny Homes Working Circle

      Tony D’Amato Stortz, who has a wealth of experience helping tiny-home communities thrive in Canadian cities, spent an hour with the March 7 Tiny Home Working Circle to share his insight and help the group advance their efforts to create affordable housing in the Brantford, Ontario community.

      Tony combines his knowledge of social services, building management and carpentry to help guide groups looking to start tiny-home communities in their cities.

      To date, Tony, who is the founder of BetterStreet, an organization that develops strategies to address homelessness, has helped launch tiny-home communities in seven Canadian cities, including Kitchener and Belleville.

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      • 13 APRIL 2023
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      Mentor says Project SEARCH Program is Fostering Interns’ Personal and Professional Growth

      Mentor says Project SEARCH Program is Fostering Interns’ Personal and Professional Growth

      Reflecting on her time mentoring students involved with the Project SEARCH initiative, Audrey Bekendam says what stands out most for her is the personal and professional growth she’s seen the interns experience.

      Audrey, who works in the housekeeping department at St. Joseph’s Lifecare Centre, says that while some of the interns were initially shy and withdrawn around residents and staff members at the Brantford long-term care home, it didn’t take long for them to acclimatize to life at St. Joe’s and get into the groove.

      “It has been very eye opening; (it’s like watching) a flower developing,” Audrey says.

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      • 2 MARCH 2023
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      Chance Encounter Leads to Valuable Community Connection for Paris Man

      Chance Encounter Leads to Valuable Community Connection for Paris Man

      Doug Pearson recently discovered a valuable community connection at the church next to his home.

      Doug had finished his weekly music therapy session one Thursday at St. Paul’s United Church in Paris, Ont., when the church’s women’s group invited him to join them for lunch.

      Since Doug was waiting to be picked up and he had time to spare, he took the women up on their offer.

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      • 28 FEBRUARY 2023
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      Tiny Homes Community Conversations and Consultations on the Horizon

      Tiny Homes Community Conversations and Consultations on the Horizon

      Much of the discussion during the Feb. 21 Tiny Homes Working Circle focused on hosting community conversations in Brantford in a few weeks to generate even more public interest in our tiny homes project as well as getting ready for the March 7 working circle, which will include a consultation with BetterStreet founder Tony D’Amato Stortz, who “wrote the book on building tiny homes.”

      During the discussion, it was decided that two community conversations should be hosted during the last week of March to help the group discover more people who would be interested in helping get the tiny-home pilot project off the ground and would be willing to bring their strengths and talents to the table.

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      • 21 FEBRUARY 2023
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      Project SEARCH is a Learning Experience for Interns and Their Mentors

      Project SEARCH is a Learning Experience for Interns and Their Mentors

      Monica Courser says the Project SEARCH initiative at St. Joseph’s Lifecare Centre has been benefiting the student interns who are doing placements at the Brantford long-term care home through the program as well as the workplace “champions” who are mentoring them.

      A dietary aide at St. Joe’s, Monica says the interns involved with Project SEARCH are learning valuable skills they can use in the workforce, while workplace champions are feeling a sense of pride in helping them take an important step in their career paths.

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      • 16 FEBRUARY 2023
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      Project SEARCH is Creating Meaningful Employment Opportunities by Connecting Students with Workplaces


      Project SEARCH is Creating Meaningful Employment Opportunities by Connecting Students with Workplaces


      Esther Haan recalls how one of the students she works with through Project SEARCH was approached at Christmas by his mentor and co-worker in the housekeeping department at St. Joseph’s Lifecare Centre with a gift: a brand-new watch.


      
This was a special gift because the intern had never owned a watch and had told everyone he works with at the Brantford long-term care home that he would never use one.


      
But since that day, he’s not been seen without the watch he proudly wears.


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