Foundry Abbotsford is hosting an open house on June 19th to celebrate its 5th anniversary and raise awareness of its services and need for community support.
Youth and their families are encouraged to learn more about the services provided, play games, enter to win door prizes and enjoy food. Community members interested in supporting local youth are invited to come get a first-hand look at the centre.
Foundry Abbotsford provides physical and mental health care, substance use supports, social services and peer support to local youth and young adults along with their families. Since opening in June 2018, the centre has helped thousands of youth.
“We’ve made great strides in transforming the way substance use, mental health and wellness services are delivered to youth over the last five years. We’re celebrating that while also looking to the future and figuring out how we can keep up with the demand,” said Simone Maassen, Manager of Youth and Health Services at Archway Community Services.
2,377 youth made more than 7,000 visits accessing almost 18,000 services over the last fiscal year, making Abbotsford the busiest Foundry location in the province.
There are waitlists for some services, so Foundry Abbotsford continues to look for donations and sponsors to be able to provide timely assistance to more youth in Abbotsford and surrounding communities.
“Funding has been an ongoing concern since we started,” said Maassen.
“Youth depend on Foundry for access to doctors, counsellors, community and peer support and sometimes that delay in services can cause the initial concern to get worse. Our goal is prevention as much as intervention, but our limited capacity can get in the way sometimes.”
Those interested in supporting Foundry Abbotsford can make donations at the event or online at Archway.ca/FoundryGift.
While fundraising efforts are ongoing, all services are provided free of charge.
The open house will be held at #101 32555 Simon Avenue from 4:00pm to 6:00pm on Monday, June 19th. There will be a Mathexwi traditional welcome song to start the event. Burgers will be provided by the Rapid Relief Team, a non-profit that offers quality catering assistance and tangible support to charities, government and emergency services confronting some of humankind’s greatest challenges.
Foundry Abbotsford is operated by Archway Community Services in partnership with Fraser Health, Ministry of Children and Family Development, Ministry of Social Development and Poverty Reduction, Matsqui-Abbotsford Impact Society, and other community partners.
Foundry Abbotsford is one of 16 sites in BC with six more planned including centres in Surrey and the Tri-Cities. There is an expansion coming for another 12 centres.
“We’ve made great strides in transforming the way substance use, mental health and wellness services are delivered to youth over the last five years. We’re celebrating that while also looking to the future and figuring out how we can keep up with the demand.”