The Carlington Summit

CCHS offers programs to parents, including single-parent women and men, to help them raise healthy, happy children. These are often immigrant or low-income families who lack the necessary skills or information that will help them gain confidence as parents. CCHS responds to their needs by providing parenting courses, early language development, literacy classes, perinatal and child nutrition, workshops on food purchasing strategies, and cooking classes.

Many parents need childcare in order to participate in these programs. CCHS itself has a well-equipped playroom for up to 25 pre-schoolers. We also have childcare facilities at our satellite sites in the community, thereby minimizing transportation and access problems. But lack of funds for childcare workers is a major barrier preventing many parents from joining the programs. This means that teenage single mothers living on social assistance are not able to learn about baby and child nutrition; that immigrant parents cannot learn how to read to their children; that poor families cannot take advantage of bulk buying or community kitchen arrangements; that harried parents cannot attend parenting courses – with the result that children are deprived of a better home environment.

Every month of every year CCHS needs 150 hours of childcare services (at $10/hour) so that parents wanting to improve their family life can learn the skills to do so.

Every month of every year parents who cannot afford child care are unable to attend the parenting courses, prenatal and baby care classes, nutrition and literacy programs offered by CCHS.

Every month of every year many children are deprived because their parents cannot learn the skills which would help them all to have a better family life.

Do you know of a company which would like to be a corporate grandfather and grandmother to these children by providing child care for a year or more? Do you work for an organization which would like to adopt our child care program on a sustaining basis? Would you like to be a “grand-company” to babies and little children who need to have informed and skilled parents?

Call Anne Joyce at 722-4000 about adoption.

Carlington Community and Health Services is a non-profit community-based health centre which provides health and social services, is committed to the well-being of our community, promotes social, economic, physical, mental and environmental health, and is responsible to the community through an elected Board of Directors. Our staff and volunteers work together to achieve these goals. For information on becoming a volunteer or a member, please call us at 722-4000.


[graphic]