Youth & Family is a non-profit society and a registered charity, previously known as Powell River Child, Youth & Family Services Society. We operate under the governance of a volunteer Board of Directors representing a cross-section of the community. We provide programs and support services for families and young people from birth to 19 years of age who reside in the municipality of Powell River and the qathet Regional District. Services are free and confidential.

Mission, Vision & Values

Supporting Individuals and Families

Mission Statement

Youth & Family supports individuals and families, and recognizes that families come in many forms and include the people you care about and those who care for you.

We believe in promoting community and personal connections and seek to prevent isolation.

We help people to preserve and enhance their important relationships.

We assist the people we serve to develop the skills to navigate life’s challenges through coaching, self-help resources, counselling, and community programs and partnerships.

Vision Statement

Our community is a place where everyone feels connected and supported and has access to knowledge and services that promote healthy relationships and personal growth.

Values Statement

We hold dearly:
• Healthy Relationships   • The Importance of Childhood   • Family Connectedness
• The Human Ability to Grow and Change

Life is filled with joys and challenges. We are here to help.

Youth & Family Society Membership

Youth & Family’s legal name is Powell River Child, Youth & Family Services Society. Members of the Society attend the Annual General Meeting and are encouraged to support the Society in fundraising and to serve as volunteers when opportunities arise. Members are expected to be familiar with the Mission and Vision of Youth & Family. Members are given opportunity to support the work of the Society and to exercise their voice by electing Directors who govern the Society.

Membership Policy

Membership in the society is governed by the following policies:

1. Members can be individuals or organizations. The vision and mandate of an organization must not be contrary to the vision and mission of Youth & Family. Membership is limited to persons who are 19 years of age or older.
2. There are two classes or members: organizations and individuals. Only individuals are eligible to serve as Directors.
3. All members are voting members and are entitled to one vote.
4. Individuals and organizations may apply to the Directors for membership in the Society by completing the current and appropriate application for membership which includes agreeing to and signing the Members Code of Ethics. Applicants submit their applications to the Board at the offices of Youth & Family Services Society.
5. The Board of its designated committee wil review applications for membership prior to a member being accepted for membership in the Society.
6. Current employees and contractors, and their immediate family members are ineligible for membership. A period of two years must have passed beyond the term or employment or contractual relationship in order for an employee or contractor, or their immediate family members, to be eligible for membership.
7. The Society’s Membership year runs from the end of the AGM to the end of following AGM. Fees are due at the end of the AGM. Receipts will be issued for payment of dues.
8. New Applicants: To be eligible to vote at the AGM in September, new applicants must have completed and submitted the application form and paid the membership fee by June 1st in order to meet the deadline for review by the Board by June 30th. Applicants will be notified within 2 weeks of the Board’s decision by mail or email. Applicants ineligible for membership will be refunded their membership fee.
9. Members-not-in-good-standing may attend the AGM but must pay the membership fee by June 1st in order to be eligible to vote at the next AGM. Members are not in good standing if they did not renew their membership by paying their fee by the end of the previous AGM. A person shall cease to be a member of the Society on having been a member-not-in-good-standing for 12 consecutive months.
10. Changes to membership fees must be approved by the members at the AGM.
11. Members are entitled to: a) one vote, b) a copy of the audited financial statements, and c) attend General Meetings.
12. A person shall cease to be a member of the Society: a) by delivering their resignation in writing to the secretary of the society or by mailing or delivering it to the address of the society, to be effective immediately on receipt of resignation, b) on his/her death or, in the case of an organization, on dissolution, c) on being expelled, or d) on having been a member-not-in-good-standing for 12 consecutive months.
13. A member may be expelled by a special resolution of the members passed at a general meeting. The notice of special resolution for expulsion shall be accompanied by a brief statement of the reason or reasons for the proposed expulsion. The person who is the subject fo the proposed resolution for expulsion shall be given an opportunity to be heard at the General Meeting before the special resolution is put to a vote.

Become A Member

To obtain an application for membership please email our Executive Director at csinkewicz@youthandfamily.ca
Applications are submitted electronically to board@youthandfamily.ca
By Mail – Attention Board of Directors, Youth and Family
PO Box 253, PO Main, Powell River, BC V8A 4Z6
Or delivered in person to 5814 Ash Ave, Powell River BC

Funders

Youth and Family is an accredited, non-profit society with charitable status. We are not a government organization, but the majority of our funding comes from the provincial government to deliver important supports and services to families in Powell River and qathet Regional District.

We partner on special projects with funders such as School District #47, Vancouver Coastal Health, the United Way, qathet Regional District, PR Community Forests Foundation and the City of Powell River. We also rely on donations from community members and businesses to help to support important work in the community for which there is no funding.

Thank You To These Donors And Supporters

Stubberhield Funeral Home
Terracentric Adventures
Texada Aerospace Camp
Tom Harris Fund for Families
United Way
Valley Building Supplies
Youth CAT / VPR’s Youth Can

A Special Thank You To These Volunteers

Brian Hasselback  •  Jim Hoffman  •  Eric Stenberg  •  Joe Cameron

Accreditation

CARF International is an independent, nonprofit accreditor of health and human services whose mission is to promote the quality, value and optimal outcomes of services through a consultative accreditation process and continuous improvement services that centers on enhancing the lives of persons served. Founded in 1966 as the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities, and now known as CARF International, the accrediting body establishes consumer-focused standards to help organizations measure and improve the quality of their programs and services.

By pursuing and achieving CARF International accreditation since 2016, Youth & Family has demonstrated that it meets international standards of quality and is committed to continual excellence. An organization receiving a Three-Year Accreditation has gone through a rigorous peer-revew process. It has demonstrated to a team during an on-site visit its commitment to offering programs and services that are measurable, accountable, and of the highest quality.

A Three-Year Accreditation is issued to Youth & Family for the following programs and services for Children & Adolescents: Case Management / Services Coordination, Diversion / Intervention, Intensive Family-Based Services, Support and Facilitation.

Our History

November 1990 Ombudsman report, “Public Services to Children and Youth and Their Families: The Need for Integration” raised serious concerns about the fragmentation of community-based services for children and families. Powell River’s response was a “partnership project” proposed by the local Mental Health Centre and Ministry of Social Services. This project would provide a new community-based service delivery model.

After consultation with the community, societies administering services and the affected workers, work was undertaken to find a suitable site for the project in the fall of 1992. Selected programs moved into a central facility, and the Youth and Family Services Centre opened its doors in July, 1993.

Programs and services were integrated into a single fiscal and administrative entity in July 1994, with Powell River Employment Society (PREP) being the administrative body. A committee was formed, and they attained both non-profit and charitable status in 1996 under the name of Powell River Child, Youth & Family Services Society (PRCYFSS). The final step was taken on April 1, 1997, with the legal transfer of contracts, employees and assets to the new society.

Over the first two fiscal years (1998-1999) fo the new society’s full operation, major developments included:
• Addition of a family therapist to the Mental Health program
• Establishment of the Parents Together program
• Restructuring Family Support and Outreach programs
• Participation in community service-planning groups
• Move to a new building on July 1, 1998
• Addition of a Bail Hostel to the contracted programs
• House daycare   • Young parent program

In January of 2001, more new programs were added:
• Supervised Access   • Home-maker   • Youth Violence Intervention program
• Youth Substance Abuse Management program
• Support to Level 2 and 3 foster homes
• Support to youth in the transition to independent living
• Young Moms outreach services (in partnership with SD#47)
• Connections program of social skill development (in partnership with SD#47)

In 2003 & 2004, we took on:
• Youth Justice Services
• Restructuring of the family services into new streams of Family Preservation and Reunification, and Family Support
• Youth Advisory Council   • Parent-Teen Mediation
• Understanding the Early Years   • Parenting After Separation

Moving Forward

In March 2004, the agency achieved accreditation with the Council On Accreditation (COA). In 2007, after much consideration, the Child & Youth Mental Health Services were transferred back to direct Ministry oversight, still on-site in the agency premises. In 2008 the agency achieved re-accreditation with the COA.

In 2009 the agency piloted a youth housing project, with MCFD as a temporary funding partner, and created the Support to At Risk Youth project (SAY Project). We developed a Youth Transitional Housing Project and suite of other supports for youth in the community. The very successful Youth Resource Centre opened in 2011 as a result of the SAY Project. The society has worked hard to keep this unfunded project afloat. In 2012, the society received Gaming funding for this project, and its continued success and growth is promising. In 2012 the agency achieved re-accreditation with the COA.

In December of 2013 the Board received an invitation to partner with School District #47. This new proposal would allow the society to remain an independent society, offered reduced costs that would allow the society to introduce immediate new supports and resources in the form of a Family Resource Centre, and promised an ongoing partnership for the society to grow into delivering community outreach programming with School District #47. After reviewing the options, the Board agreed to vigorously pursue the partnership with SD#47 in order to continue the society’s work.

In 2023, Youth & Family applied and were awarded the opportunity to open and operate a Foundry Centre. As of June 2024, we have hired a Foundry project manager and are in the planning stages for the new facility.

We have enjoyed approximately 10 years in Oceanview Education Centre at 7105 Nootka Street. In July 2024, our offices and Library Resources moved to 5814 Ash Ave in Townsite. The Youth Resource Centre will remain in the Oceanview Education Centre.

STRATEGIC PLANS

PRCYFSS
Strategic Plan 2023-2025