Issues & Trends from the Executive Director
It has been a busy time at Community Living Victoria (CLV).
Many of the people we support enjoyed activities and holidays over the summer. The wonderful weather enabled so much outdoor time and many people enjoyed a holiday or an activity they could not otherwise afford. Our Reach for the Sun fundraiser administered by the Foundation provided the means for over 100 individuals to enjoy the summer.
CLBC welcomed new CEO Seonag Macrae in August. Seonag has had many years of experience working in Ontario and BC in the human services sector. Go to CLBC’s website www.communitylivingbc.ca for more information about her. Over the last few months, Seonag has met many of her partners in community living. While it is early, we are hopeful that her leadership will help foster a healthy relationship with community agencies, families and individuals in the years ahead.
Due to the school strike, we accommodated individuals and families by providing a full day camp for several weeks in September. Our third InclusionWorks! group began this fall. This family governed group is getting to know each other and is focusing on their education and employment related goals. We see an increasing trend in individuals and families wanting more control and say about who supports them and how. This is particularly true for younger families and youth who are using their individualized funding to this end. We have also recently established several social groups, which many people have been asking for. One focuses on youth and the other, adults who live in the WestShore. In addition, a new self advocacy group got off the ground in October. This group will focus on advocacy and being ambassadors for CLV.
Our latest strategic planning session, held at the end of February 2014, provides guidance to CLV about what the organization should focus on over the next three years. You can view the goals arising from this planning session on our website. Key initiatives include the need to replace another of our homes and to find a new location for two of our Community Inclusion programs. We are actively working with BC Housing Management Commission to find either a suitable property to renovate or a lot to build an accessible home.
The needs of the people we serve are becoming more complex. Like many organizations, we are faced with significant challenges as people age. This is particularly difficult given the expectation from government that we find ways to be efficient and do more with very limited resources. We have committed resources to training in areas such as: supporting people with complex needs; emergency training; informed consent; PIPA (Privacy Information and Protection Act), and values and choices.
In April, we participated in our fourth CARF accreditation survey and obtained our next three-year accredited agency status. We received many positive comments about CLV and learned about a few areas where we can improve. Accreditation ensures that we have the systems, policies and processes in place for continuous quality improvement.
Our 59th Annual General Meeting was held September 17th. Mark your calendars for December 6th, 2015 when we celebrate our 60th anniversary! There were 3 new board members elected and two other board members ran successfully for another 3 year term. In addition to reporting to the membership, we presented our recognition of service awards to staff. Many of our employees have been with us long-term and we were pleased to present awards to employees for 35, 30, 25, and 20 years of service! Recruitment and retention are a major issue for the social services sector and yet CLV seems more successful than many organizations. Having familiar staff who knows the individuals has a significant impact on their quality of life.
On November 13th, we will be hosting our second Eat, Drink, Learn and Be Merry event for staff and board members. This is an opportunity to learn more about Community Living Victoria and the services we provide in the community and to network with colleagues and board members. We will also be bringing staff, board members and our supporters together again, in December for our annual seasonal celebration.
The holiday season is fast approaching. Please consider contributing to our Reach for the Stars fundraiser, which ensures the people we support enjoy the holiday season. For some people, this provides food, clothing and other necessities of life. Your donation makes a real difference.
