To quote Rod Stewart’s lyrics in Faith of the Heart – “It’s been a long road, getting from there to here.”
Over the last 30 years, the Community Resource Centre of North and Centre Wellington has dealt with winds of change, and hasn’t let anyone hold it back in the quest to help the community.
Executive director Ron MacKinnon, who’s been with the resource centre for the past 12 years, is quite aware the group is known by multiple names within the community.
Over the course of three decades, the organization has undergone numerous name changes as it adapted to the changing needs of the community.
First called the Centre Wellington Advisory Group, the organization was started by concerned citizens who felt there were gaps in services available in rural areas.
“They wanted to identify the gaps and ways to bring those services to people living throughout the county,” said MacKinnon.
In 1985, a group from the University of Guelph, a staff person from NWAG (North Wellington Advisory Group), and a representative from the Ministry of Community and Social Services met with the local committee to discuss and identify needs in the area.
This committee applied for funding from the ministry to enable the provision of services to families, children and seniors. In February 1986, a staff person was hired to begin the process.
A program for children, known as the Rural Family Resource Program, was established soon after. This was the only program that each of the WAGs (North, East and Centre Wellington Advisory Groups) had in common.
Incorporation as a nonprofit agency was achieved in July 1986. Programs were slowly established based on local needs as outlined by the community. They included: a before and after school care program, a home child care provider listing, parent-child enrichment programs, a respite program for moms, housing registry and information services, outreach and support, toy lending and resource library, and the J.D. Hogarth Child Care Centre.
“Groups were set up to identify what was missing and how to get that service to people,” said MacKinnon.
“To this day, our outreach and support services program still works that way … there are some outreach service programs offered directly to people, but the main thing is that we connect them to the most appropriate organization which can assist them.”
The idea is to not waste funds by duplicating existing services, said MacKinnon, adding there is also the matter of expertise.
“We would actually be doing those individuals a disservice by offering a service when there is someone who can do the job better,” he said.
CWRG
One of the first name changes was to CWRG (Centre Wellington Resource Group)to reflect the fact the organization acted as a resource, while also offering resources to local community members.
Additional programs continued to evolve over the next few years, including: Let Kids Play, seminars to volunteers to enable them to complete tax returns for other members of the community, household goods donations and distribution and drop-in information and referral services.
Community Resource Centre
MacKinnon said another major change came about when the North Wellington Advisory Group (NWAG) found itself in need of restructuring.
NWAG closed its doors in 1999 and left the northern part of the county under-serviced – so the North and Centre Wellington groups combined efforts.
The organization once again changed its name – to the Community Resource Centre of North and Centre Wellington – after a long decision making process which recognized it as a resource in both north and Centre Wellington.
MacKinnon said that change resulted in the organization expanding its services to include Minto and Mapleton, in addition to Centre Wellington and Wellington North.
“Those are the same four communities we work in to this day.”
More changes
MacKinnon said the Centre Wellington group was offering a family support program to families with young children, which was changed by the Conservative government of the day to the Ontario Early Years Program.
The local centre was selected as the lead agency for the Ontario Early Years centre serving all of rural Wellington County, from Fergus to Clifford to Erin and all points in between.
When that program became part of the group’s mandate, the name changed.
“Ironically in our 30th year, we now know that Ontario Early Years will become Ontario Early Years Child and Family Centres in 2018.”
The provincial initiative provides universal service to all families in the province, regardless of location. The 103 centres serve all of Ontario, providing every child and family the opportunity for the best start in life.
Due in part to this major expansion of services, relocation to a new facility was required. In July 2003, the centre moved to a multi-use facility in downtown Fergus in the historical Groves Mill Building.
This location allowed the incorporation of many community partners and space to offer many services under the same roof.
In October 2003, a third Community Resource Centre office was opened in Harriston, to serve as a base of operations for Ontario Early Years satellite services in north Wellington, and provide another location for the Outreach and Support program in the area.
December 2005 brought more changes to programs as the organization moved away from the geographical divide which kept outreach staff working separately.
In September 2006, a second child centre was opened at St. John Catholic School in Arthur. January 2007 saw expansion of outreach and support. Through Wellington County funding, a part time transportation coordinator was able to operate a program to fill in the gaps of transportation in rural areas.
In June 2007, the organization received a Trillium grant as the lead agency for the Rural Wellington Transportation Group to work on an 18-month project to further meet community needs.
Over the years, the organization’s budget has grown from just short of $1 million, to $1.9 million in 2015.
“That has enabled us to provide a great deal more service to people in need within the community,” said MacKinnon.
He explained major funding comes from a variety of sources, including the United Way, Wellington County, and the province of Ontario (currently the Ministry of Education).
MacKinnon said the chid care centre, first opened at J.D. Hogarth Public School, expanded to three other Fergus schools: Elora Public, James McQueen Public and St. Joseph’s Catholic.
“Our outreach and support programs have matured greatly,” he added.
MacKinnon classified early services as “valiant efforts but more like a Band Aid to help with the problem,” whereas the programs offered today can help people in significant ways.
“One of those programs allows staff to complete income taxes for free. That meant over 600 people had their taxes completed by the Community Resources Centre and we returned over $600,000 to those people.”
MacKinnon added, “Those same people are now eligible for all of the social assistance programs which are available. Not only that, the money returned to them can be spent on their families.”
MacKinnon noted low-income families tend to spend locally.
The group has also partnered with the Guelph and Wellington Children’s Foundation in the Christmas Adopt-a-Family program.
MacKinnon also spoke to the backpack program which provides children of low income families with age-appropriate backpacks fully equipped with school supplies.
He added outreach staff also have some funds available to help individuals with rent and utility payments – and some funds that can be used when all other sources have been exhausted.
“We’re able to help families who may be working-poor. This helps them get over that ‘hump’ until they can get back on their feet again.”
MacKinnon sees the need for services growing – but at a slow rate.
“I think we found a lot of growth initially because as we adapted out programs and make them more specific to help people, we had sudden growth.”
Now that programs have existed for some time, MacKinnon sees growth of about 10 per cent each year.
“We have 800 households on our lists throughout the four municipalities,” which can be an individual or a family, he noted.
MacKinnon explained that today, child care offered by the centre focuses not so much on skills, but more on helping children grow and develop “individually.”
He said there is a great emphasis on socialization skills – “In the rest of their lives, they are going to need to know these skills.
“The other focus is on nature so whenever possible, so hopefully they will be environmentally responsible when they grow up.”
The future
MacKinnon said the most immediate change will be the Ontario Learning Years program becoming the Ontario Learning Years Child and Family Centres.
While the name is much the same, MacKinnon said the services available to young people and parents will be quite broad.
The vision of the Community Resource Centre is one where every person has the opportunity to succeed.
“Some people might say we are focussed on low-income families,” MacKinnon said. While that is true for some programs, he said “we want everyone in the community to succeed” – whether it is children or adults.
“We don’t care whether someone has a disability or the IQ of genius … we still want them to succeed and reach their potential,” said MacKinnon, adding there is also a strong presence in a youth homelessness program.
“We do have a strong belief in the idea of a guaranteed basic annual income, that both the provincial and federal governments are talking about,” he said.
“I see that as truly the only effective way to help a good number of people escape poverty.”
MacKinnon said a guaranteed annual income would mean a number of existing programs at the centre “could fold or be focussed on different needs in the community.”
