At Why Not Youth Centre, we believe that every young person is important and deserves all the help they can get to overcome their challenges and meet their goals.
Nearly every youth who comes through our door is struggling in some way, be it with homelessness, mobility, bullying, or unsafe living conditions.
When we’re doing our job right, they are safe, get the help that they need, and move forward with their lives.
Resources For Youth
Youth Drop In Centre
Why Not Youth Centre is vibrant, inclusive, and a little loud. Drop-in hours are seven days a week from 5:00pm to 9:00pm.
With dozens of teens on site at any time, there is a variety of simultaneous activities going on at any time, including karaoke, pool, Just Dance, video games, board games, lounging, arts and crafts, or anything else that the group can come up with!
At various points throughout the year, different initiatives take place, including workshops, activities such as boxing (off site), excursions and even a weekend away at camp. There are also on-site, substance-free celebrations of some sort for almost every event, including group birthdays, Christmas, Valentine’s Day, Halloween, and more.
All activities offered through the youth centre are completely free thanks to sponsorships from our community. Activities are supervised by the staff team and a dynamic group of dedicated volunteers who do everything they can to keep the youth centre welcoming, fun, and helpful.
Why Not+
Why Not+ is our newest program offering a safe and inclusive place for those ages 19-25 to come to hang out, make new connections and engage with our incredible team of staff and volunteers. This team is available to help the youth plan out and implement next step goals and to provide the same welcoming and vibrant space for older youth as the younger youth experience in our night time drop in program.
Activities, snacks, special events, onsite clothing bank and laundry facilities are all offered free of cost to youth attending.
Mentorship
Why Not uses a team approach to youth mentorship. Rather than having 1:1 pairings, the volunteer mentorship team works collaboratively to engage all of the youth. They engage the youth in meaningful conversation, providing a listening ear and screen for crisis situations, quickly connecting youth to the Crisis Staff to get them the help that they need. They are behind some of our most engaging activities and are a huge help in running daily programming. Many of our youth mentors are post-secondary students or recent graduates looking to give back to our community and gain experience working with youth. Past youth mentors have moved on to work in corrections, school boards, police forces, and other social service organizations.
To apply to be part of the mentorship team, please visit our Volunteer Opportunities Page.
A plethora of entirely free resources are available to youth attending Why Not including:
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Physical Resources: clothing, shoes, school supplies, access to food pantry…
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Practical Resources: hot supper nightly, Computer & Wi-Fi access, document printing…
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Financial Awareness Coaching: budgeting, income taxes
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FUN: day trips, Recreational activities
PLUS….
Life Skills Coaching:
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Leadership training, and Community volunteer experience (get those volunteer hours!)
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Employment readiness support: resume writing, interview prep
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Cooking and baking activities
Supports to Reduce or Eliminate Barriers:
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Resource networking (is there another local resource that can help you?)
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Social navigation support (help getting ID, getting back in school),
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Education support – tutoring, homework help, free Wi-Fi and computer access
Mental Health Supports:
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Crisis and de-escalation support
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Workshops on CBT
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Psychotherapy can be made available
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All staff trained in suicide prevention and mental health first aid
