Niagara Children’s Centre embarks on $350,000 fundraising campaign
Niagara Children’s Centre has launched its Help Kids Shine fundraising campaign with a goal of raising $350,000.
Last year, the organization served more than 5,300 children and youths with physical, developmental and communicative delays, providing services such as physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech and language services, augmentative and alternative communication, family services and therapeutic recreation.
The campaign, launched on Wednesday and continuing all month, is intended to help the organization continue providing programs and services not covered by government funding. These include recreational therapy, behavioural consultation services, family-to-family support programs and aquatics.
Two-year-old Andrew De Caire, a client of the centre, and his family helped launch the campaign at Stone Mill Inn in St. Catharines.
Andrew, an ambassador for the campaign, faces challenges associated with a brain injury and hemiplegia, a form of cerebral palsy affecting one side of his body. He’s also curious, resilient and has an insatiable love for life, the organization said.
His mom, Courtney, delivered a personal message of hope and shared Andrew’s story at the event.
“Before connecting with the centre, we were overwhelmed with the unknown. We were feeling very isolated and were unsure how to navigate this new journey that we were on,” she was quoted in a news release form the children’s centre. “Not only were we new parents, we were new parents with a child who had significant health concerns.”
Andrew received his first physiotherapy session at the centre when he was two months old. Today, he thrives under the care of a dedicated team, which includes physiotherapists, occupational therapists, speech-language pathologists and social workers, the organization said.
The family also benefits from a network of people who understand their situation. A family mentor program allows them to connect with other families, which helps build a sense of understanding and belonging, the organization said.
“The children’s centre has become an extended part of our family, and we’re forever grateful for their compassion during what was the most difficult time of our lives,” Courtney said.
A number of other ambassadors like Andrew will be sharing their stories throughout May online and in interviews on local radio, with support from Newstalk 610 CKTB, 97.7 HTZ-FM and Move 105.7.
Two other businesses, Wormald Masse Keen Lopinski Chartered Accountants LLP and O’Hara Trucking & Excavating, have each pledged up to $25,000 as donor matching sponsors during the campaign.
More information on the campaign is available at helpkidsshine.ca.