The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

A4 THE OAKVILLE BEAVER Wednesday March 10,1999 * C o v e n a n t H o u se a re fu g e fo r a re a 's tro u b le d y o u th B y W ilm a B lokhuis OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF Christine wants to go home. She's been away from Oakville for four months, staying at various shelters. Her last attempt failed, and now she's at Covenant House which overlooks Yonge Street in Toronto. All she talks about is her desire to go home and put her life back together, and going back into school. "I've been having some ongoing problems with my mom" said the 16- year-old. "I'm finding things really diffi­ cult now that I'm in my teenage years .. . I left home. I've made a couple of attempts to go back home, but it didn't work out. My ultimate goal is to go home." She believes Covenant House may be the answer. "Unlike other shelters, there's no time limit here. I had to leave the other shelters." Up until a few weeks ago, Christine (not her real name) was getting up at 4:30 a.m. to go to school in Oakville. Now, she can get tutoring from two teachers working at Covenant House. "I'm really hoping I can go back home. My family lives really close to my school. I want to get on with my life. I'm so young still. . . " At Covenant House, Christine is also receiving counselling to help resolve the conflict at home. "My mom knows I'm here. She's already been here and we've gone out for lunch. She's becoming sup­ portive again, and that's good." She feels safe at this 88-bed emer­ gency youth shelter at the comer of Yonge and Gerrard Streets. "There are a lot of security cameras. I really appreci­ ate this protection. No drugs or alcohol are allowed at Covenant House." It is staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week. And there's a curfew. "No kid should be walking the street after 10 o'clock at night," says social worker Cynthia Kiy, of Oakville. The Covenant House staff works in teams, and Kiy is associated with youth workers, nurses, the two teachers, life skills coaches and commu­ nity workers. Kiy has been at Covenant House for nine years. "We help kids come to terms with the situation they found themselves in when they first came here, to come to terms with why they came here," explains Kiy, adding the reasons teens from Oakville come to Covenant House are no different than those of others from across the Greater Toronto Area. "Any kid who comes through our doors needing help, gets help. We have workers going out looking for kids on the street, and offer them a safe place." -Cynthia Kiy, Covenant House social worker "They come here because there are problems in their family - someone in their family is physically or sexually vio­ lent, or there is too much economic pres­ sure and stress. There may be drug activ­ ity, school problems - there's a whole range of situations where kids need help. "Our first goal is to get them back to their families and back in school." Should that not be an option, Covenant House offers rehabilitation, counselling and group home living, "whatever is most appropriate." Currently, the shelter has about 80 youths in residence, aged 16 to 22. Over half of them are under 18. "It's not uncommon to have kids from Oakville and other parts of Halton at Covenant House. We've got kids coming in for food, a shower, and support," said Kiy. "Any kid who comes through our doors needing help, gets help. We have workers going out looking for kids on the street, and offer them a safe place." To stay at Covenant House, a teen or young adult must have a "plan of action" to get back home and return to school or find employment, explains Kiy. "And, the residents must take and active part in that plan to make their lives better. And, they must follow a few rules, such as going to school, looking for work, fol­ lowing a job training program, and obey­ ing the curfew." Covenant House was founded in 1982 years ago by the Catholic Archdiocese of Toronto, however, it now operates inde­ pendently. The shelter is supported finan­ cially by various churches, corporations, businesses and private individuals. It has about 25 day and eight overnight staff including five social workers, four nurses, and about five out­ reach workers. "There's staff here all the time, the kids feel very safe," says Kiy. Last year, Covenant House helped 6,000 kids. Workers also give school pre­ sentations about the dangers of street life, and last year volunteers and staff spoke to 16,000 children aged 12 to 16. Covenant House representatives come to schools in the Greater Toronto Area at no charge. About 80% of its budget comes from donations and fundraising. A major fundraiser is the annual Casino Night hosted by the Toronto Maple Leafs at BCE Place on March 18th. Now in its sixth year, this event has raised more than $500,000. Tickets are $150 each, call Susan Schwartz at 416- 204-7067. Dress is business attire. Covenant House is Canada's largest emergency youth shelter, with locations in Toronto and Vancouver. Last year, about 6,000 kids received assitance. Photo by Peter J. Thompson Cynthia Kiy: Covenant House social worker says it's a safe haven for trou­ bled youth. 4 D AYS - S TA R TIN G TH IS T H U R S D A Y selected items storewide FOR WOMEN, MEN & KIDS T ake an a d d itio n a l 40%off • a ll w o m e n 's p rev ious ly reduced career and casual fash ions (includes regular, petite and Eaton woman sizes)* • w o m e n 's p rev ious ly reduced accessories* p reviously reduced m en 's se lec ted c o lle c tio n s • a ll k id s ' wear c lea rance m erchand ise • p rev ious ly reduced m e n 's, w om en 's & k id s ' shoes (includes athletics) FOR WOMEN 40% O ff • boxed bras and b rie fs by W arner's and Vogue Bra. (excludes Vogue Dessous and twinpacks) 2 5 % o ff • C laude l sleepwear and robes No ta x '* • on se lected regu la r-p riced jew e lle ry, w atches & handbags M ore great deals in store. 4 days - Thursday, M arch 11 FOR YOUR HOME 5 0 % o ff • regu la r-priced U ltra Dry towels. Face, hand, bath & bath sheet. 3 0 % o ff • C atina & Garcia open stock so lid co lour d innerw are $100 off • 'A va lanche ' tab le & 2 chairs. Textured b lue only. No specia l orders. (in selected stores only) Just look for the balloons, to Sunday, M arch 1 4 ,1 9 9 9 EATO Personal shopping only. Savings are on the original ticketed price unless otherwise noted. Sale offers cannot be combined. ' Excludes women's Diversity Fashions. " We w ill deduct the equivalent of applicable taxes from the total purchase price. A ll offers exclude Factory Outlet, Warehouse Stores and Clearance Centres. W h e n I r i s h E y e s a r e f ? s m il in g , t h e y 'r e u s u a l- S i y S l i L u p t o s o m e t h in g . X $ A CLEARANCE SALE % t STARTS TODAY % 6 0 1 ( r e m a in in g w in t e r s tock) Join us Sat. Mar. 13, 1999 for our St. Patricks D a y C elebration, JBfe. ¥ Irish Dancers performing from 1-4 p.m. For all your St. Patricks D ay needs, ties, * shirts, pins, caps, music and lots o f •AL gift ideas. fe # $ A ' * ^ L a s s i e s « £ 8 8 D u n n S t. D o w n to w n O a k v ille 2 C 3 3 8 - 7 1 6 0 \ If there is a baby on the way... You' llw a n tto a tte n d th e i s » A d m i s s i o n • D em o n stra tio n s • Sp ec ia l D isplays • E xciting G ifts for E very m other-To -B e • N u m ero u s D oor Prizes By invitation only. Date: Sunday, March 28th Starts at 12:30 p.m. Holiday Inn, Oakville (Argus Road, W. of Trafalgar) For Invitation Inquiries Please call HOSTESS C H R IS T IN E 2 5 7 - 5 8 8 8