CHANGE A LIFE
It’s hard to be new. Whether it’s the first day of a new job, starting high school, or joining a sports team – there is something uniquely nerve-wracking about a fresh start. “We’ve all been there,” says Calem Forster, a Leadership 10 student at Clayton Heights Secondary School in Surrey. “When I was in grade
Periods are a fact of life. Monthly menstruation products are a necessity. Sadly, across the Lower Mainland and Fraser Valley, too many people can’t afford them. These include young girls and single mothers; newcomers and refugees, who face added levels of stigma; and trans and gender non-conforming folks, for whom this can be a compounding
With the installation of several little libraries in Clayton Heights, residents of this Surrey neighborhood are writing a new story about their fast-growing community. On Family Day, February 18, Clayton Heights residents and staff from United Way British Columbia gathered at Katzie Elementary School to celebrate the launch of 7 little libraries in the neighbourhood.
Sometimes, it’s our earliest memories that stick. Experiences from childhood can shape our understanding of community. They can establish strong connections to our heritage and culture, and they can inspire us to help build beautiful, safe spaces for others. For Edmund Ma, the time he spent with his maternal and paternal grandparents as a young
No one is ever too young or too old, too novice or too seasoned, to make a difference in their community. Every day across the globe, individuals of different ages, experience-levels and backgrounds work to create positive social change in the spaces they call home. Take, for example, Malala Yousafzai. At just 11 years old, she
January can be a hard time of the year. While the days are slowly getting lighter, the pink cherry blossoms of spring are still far away, and depending on the weather, the sun can set before 5 o’clock in the afternoon. This makes it hard – as both a family and an individual – to
A connected community is a healthy community. Strong connections increase our mental, physical and emotional well-being. They positively impact our quality of life and increase our overall happiness and satisfaction. But what works in one community may not in another. Every neighbourhood is unique, and everyone – from individual citizens to companies operating in the
The beginning of a new year is a great opportunity to pause, reflect, and look back at everything you accomplished the last 365 days. In 2018, we launched a rather remarkable goal: By 2025, we want to inspire 1 million people to engage in acts of local love across the Lower Mainland and Fraser Valley.
Show your local love in 2019 with your own Acts of Local Love calendar! Download your own copy of the 2019 Acts of Local Love calendar here. And don’t forget to let us know! Share your love and sign up to be 1 in a million here.
There is something important and impactful about looking back. It gives us time to pause and reflect on the year that was: we can celebrate the partnerships forged, relationships deepened and impact made. At United Way, it also helps reaffirm our commitment to tackling the unignorable issues we see in our communities – issues like
Sometimes it can feel like the world has gone to the dogs. It can be hard to recognize all of the ways in which our communities shine. Whether it be through programs that support our most vulnerable, neighbours who take care of each other, or individuals who tackle unignorable social issues – local love is
What defines ‘community’? Is it the people in our neighbourhoods? Our colleagues and teammates? What about our family and friends? Any way you choose to define it, a community can be as diverse and unique as the people who call it home. There are also times when we find and build community unexpectedly: by trying
Connecting youth and seniors Did you know that across the Lower Mainland 25,000+ local seniors say they have nobody to talk to? Unfortunately, the risks are real: loneliness can be just as dangerous to a senior’s health as smoking. The leadership students at Clayton Heights Secondary are helping tackle the unignorable issue of isolation by creating positive
Think of the person who has changed your life for the better. How did they help? What did they do to make a difference? Whether it be a parent, friend or mentor, it’s imperative to have that one person – the person you can count on, no matter what. Across the Lower Mainland and Fraser
If generosity had a holiday, it would be Giving Tuesday. After we shop our hearts out on Black Friday and Cyber Monday, Giving Tuesday encourages us to give from the heart as well. But we know people in our own neighbourhoods are struggling with unignorable issues, every day. They simply cannot wait until Giving Tuesday
For over 40 years, United Way and the Canadian labour movement have been partners, working towards the common goal of ensuring workers and their families have access to life-changing social services across their communities. At their core, unions and the labour movement have been, and continue to be, integral forces for democracy. In both the
When Jeff Tsai and his family moved to Port Coquitlam 15 years ago, he remembers the city being much different from the lively community it is today. “It was such a sleepy little suburb when we first moved,” he says “but has grown leaps and bounds into a bustling city.” One of the things that
Trinity has lived with her Grandma, Ramona since she was four because her mother and father struggle with addiction. On a typical day after school, nine-year-old Trinity would go home to her Grandma’s. She’d do homework, watch some TV and play with her dog. That changed when she enrolled in a United Way’s School’s Out
Name three amazing community partners working together to build safe, supportive spaces for children, families and seniors across the Lower Mainland and Fraser Valley. Survey says: KPMG, Odlum Brown and Dentons Canada! Earlier this month, these three community champions got together to show their local love at the 3rd Annual Family Feud Fundraiser. Boasting a
Long-time community supporter, John DeLucchi, has been recognized with the 2018 Joseph and Rosalie Segal United Way Community Vision Award. He received the tribute Tuesday night surrounded by family and friends at United Way British Columbia’s Pathfinders Dinner, an annual recognition event for major gift donors. The Community Vision Award recognizes individuals or families who have