Archway News
Stay up to date on news about Archway programs, events and partnerships with other community organizations.
Archway’s Toys for Tots Collects Over 1,500 Toys
Volunteer at theToys for Tots Drive Thru EventThe Archway Toys for Tots event collected more than 1,500 toys and $24,000 for gifts for children, youth and seniors on Friday, November 26th. “We weren’t sure how the turnout would be with the ongoing flooding, new...
Responding to the BC Floods
Thank you to everyone who donated food, money and time to help out those affected by the floods. We are also grateful for the leadership of our city, local First Nations, police and departments as well as search and rescue and during this province-wide emergency. So...
Prospera Youth Angel Tree Project Celebrates 10th Years
Prospera Credit Union is collecting gifts for youth in need with their tenth annual Youth Angel Tree Project. The program began in 2011 after Prospera staff met with Archway staff and realized that there was an unmet need in providing Christmas gifts specifically for...
Archway Toys for Tots Changes Venues Due to Flooding
The Clarion Hotel’s Toys for Tots event benefitting the Archway Food Bank of Abbotsford will now be held at the Abbotsford Centre due to flooding at the hotel. “The Clarion Hotel have been long-term partners in this event and despite everything the hotel industry has...
Christmas Gift Wrapping at Seven Oaks Mall
Christmas Gift Wrapping at Seven Oaks MallLooking to Get Gifts Wrapped? Save time during the busy holiday season while supporting Archway and newcomers to Canada. The booth will be by the former Guest Services outside the Bay Entrance in the Sevenoaks Shopping...
Archway Community Builders Awards to Stream Live on October 28th
Archway Community Builders Awards to Stream Live on October 28thMichael Adkins, Betty Johnson, Kevin Murray and the Abbotsford Division of Family Practice are being honoured for their contributions to the community at the annual Archway Community Builders Awards. A...
Abbotsford Mission Recycling Program holds Pumpkin Decorating Day
The Abbotsford Mission Recycling Program will host its annual Day of Pumpkin Decorating on Saturday, Oct. 23rd. The event runs from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the recycling depot at 33670 Valley Rd. in Abbotsford. Families will have the option of decorating onsite while...
National Day for Truth and Reconciliation Events in the Fraser Valley
National Aboriginal Day Awareness event held in 2014 at UFV. University of the Fraser Valley, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia CommonsNational Day for Truth and Reconciliation Events and Exhibits in the Fraser Valley Please follow the links or contact the organizers for more...
Archway Charity Golf Tournament Raises $70,000
Archway Golf Committee members Dilraj Brar, Janis Mitchell, Eric Heath and Steve CarltonArchway Community Services raised $70,000 for local community programs at its fourth annual charity golf tournament. The Archway Golf Tournament, presented by Sutton Group...
Archway becomes a United Way Regional Community Food Hub to Better Improve Food Security for Abbotsford Residents
Participants who also volunteered at the first Bulk Buy Collective in June 2021Archway Community Services was awarded a $198,000 grant through United Way’s Regional Community Food Hub initiative. Funding will support the Archway Food Justice program which includes the...
Archway Charity Golf Online Auction
The auction component of the Archway Golf Tournament is going online and is open to the public for the first time. The auction has now started and will be open until June 24th. Some of the auction highlights include two team signed Canucks jerseys, a VIP dining...
Educational Resources on Residential Schools
Display outside of a church on the Stoney Indian Reserve in Alberta that mourns the loss of children in residential schools I believe the most important part of learning about residential schools is that the we must all educate themselves. Placing the words...
Nominations Open for Archway Community Builders’ Awards
Nominations are now being accepted for the Community Builders’ Awards organized by Archway Community Services. The awards honor outstanding individuals and organizations who work tirelessly, passionately and collaboratively to make our community a better place in...
Social Prescribing Program Links Vulnerable Seniors to Health Supports
The Archway Social Prescribing Program for Seniors helps seniors in Abbotsford delay frailty, practice self-care management, and reduce their loss of independence. The program offers a pathway from a doctor or nurse practitioner’s office to local, non-clinical...
National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls
Photo of The REDress Project at Acadia University in 2015 by Christine Rondeau. May 5th marks National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls. Assembly of First Nations Alberta Regional Chief Marlene Poitras shared, “When we talk about...
Archway celebrates Volunteers during National Volunteer Week 2021
“I want to thank you volunteers for who you are for us here at Archway, and to our community. What you do provides opportunities for others. Especially during a time of COVID when people are more isolated. I want to say from the bottom of my heart, thank you for how...
Registration Now Open for 8th Annual Environmental Mind Grind
Virtual Trivia Competition on April 22nd invites Abbotsford and Mission students. Registration for the 2021 Environmental Mind Grind on April 22nd is now open. The trivia-based competition is open to middle and high school students in Grades 6 - 12 from Abbotsford...
How Archway Continues to Pivot to Meet Community Needs
Article by Jody Paterson, Executive Director of Board VoiceWalter Paetkau was a young Mennonite on a mission when he first arrived in Abbotsford in the 1960s with a passion for community development. More than half a century later, those seeds that Paetkau nurtured...
Champions of Diversity Recognized at Fraser Valley Cultural Diversity Awards
Over 250 households tuned in to watch the first virtual Fraser Valley Cultural Diversity Awards on Wednesday, March 10th. Six organizations received Cultural Diversity Awards in the categories of innovative initiatives, marketing, human resources and inclusive...
ACAT Raises Awareness in Local Schools About Sexual Exploitation
The Abbotsford Community Action Team (ACAT) is raising awareness in Abbotsford middle and high schools about sexual exploitation through posters, stickers and online information. The posters feature four of the possible warning signs of sexual exploitation which...
Virtual Cultural Diversity Awards to Feature Speaker Jam Gamble
The 18th annual Fraser Valley Cultural Diversity Awards on March 10th will be a virtual event for the first time. Although the event will look different, organizers felt it was important to continue recognizing individuals and organizations who celebrate and champion...
Auto Mall Food Drive Shifts Gears to Deliver Donation
Over the last 14 years, the annual Fraser Valley Auto Mall Food Bank Drive has helped provide food to local people in need throughout the holiday season. This year marks the first time the organizers needed to pivot and modify the fundraising activities, and we are...
1,800 Gifts Donated for Toys for Tots Despite Event Cancellation
Ann Gardner, Anne Laury and Kathy Cook sorting donated toys. (left to right) Organizers for the cancelled Toys for Tots event have been astonished by the generosity of the community. The event had to be cancelled just three days before the planned drive-thru on...
Youth Angel Tree Project Underway at Prospera Credit Union
2019 Prospera Youth Angel Tree. Prospera Credit Union is collecting gifts for disadvantaged youth in their ninth annual Youth Angel Tree Project. At Prospera’s two Abbotsford branches, tags for almost 70 youth are hung on trees, and community members can take a tag....
Sutton Realty Announced as Title Sponsor of Archway Jake Virtanen Charity Golf Tournament
Professional hockey player Jake Virtanen (second from left) with Sutton Group West Coast Realty - Abbotsford realtors Rob Koslowsky, Amelia Parkin, Mike Gibson and Rod Poole (left to right.) Sutton Group West Coast Realty Abbotsford has secured the title sponsor spot...
Cultural Diversity Awards Seek Nominations
Nominations are now open for the 18th annual Fraser Valley Cultural Diversity Awards. “While we aren't quite sure what format the 2021 awards will be in, we do want to keep recognizing champions of diversity and inclusion,” said event organizer Patricia...
Archway’s Toys for Tots Event to Continue in New Format
Like so many community events, Toys for Tots which raises toys and financial donations for the Christmas Bureau program of the Archway Food Bank, has had to readjust their plans due to COVID-19. The fundraiser has transitioned to a drive-thru event in the parking lot...
Archway Launches Community Van Pilot with Multiple Partners
A pilot Community Van project aims to fill the gap for non-transit transportation in Abbotsford. Volunteers will drive vulnerable and low-income individuals and families to appointments, services and community or work participation activities. Archway Community...
New Beginnings: Expanded Supports for Young Parents
The Archway New Beginnings program, which offers young parents the opportunity to complete their secondary school education while accessing parenting supports and quality childcare, has expanded their offering and is reaching out further into the community. We are...
CN Grant to Fund Domestic Violence Prevention Program at Archway
A $10,000 grant from CN will fund a domestic violence prevention program specifically geared towards Punjabi-speaking immigrant men. Courtyard for Men offers eight psychoeducational therapy group sessions in Punjabi with licensed counsellors who teach effective...
Rod Santiago Marks 10 Years as Archway Executive Director
Our Executive Director, Rod Santiago, recently marked 10 years at the helm of Archway Community Services. This past decade has been filled with tremendous growth and change for us as an organization, with much for him to reflect on. Some changes were public,...
Black Lives Matter
Archway Community Services stands by its June 15th statement of support on the Black Lives Matter movement. The statement that “all lives matter” suggests or assumes that equality has already happened. This ideal is still very far from the reality for people...
Gang Prevention Work Continues Amid COVID
Anti-gang youth workers have continued to support at-risk youth with modified services to meet the unique challenges that have emerged during the COVID pandemic. The In It Together program, which is part of Archway Community Services, seeks to disrupt the flow of...
Hoon Park Natural Playground Now Open
Abbotsford residents can now enjoy enhanced outdoor recreation opportunities with the completion of several park improvement projects, announced Mayor Henry Braun. These improvements include the natural park playground at Hoon Park, a legacy of Archway's 50th...
Foundry Health Centre Celebrates 2nd Year of Helping Youth
Foundry Abbotsford celebrated its second year in operation with a virtual bingo event on June 19th. Foundry Abbotsford provides local youth between 12 and 24 and their families with integrated wellness services, such as physical and mental health care, substance use...
Black Lives Matter Statement – What Our Rights Allow and What Our Conscience Compels
Photo Credit: Ehimetalor Akhere Unuabona on Unsplash A message from our Executive Director, Rod Santiago Greetings friends of Archway, I, like you, have been disturbed and angered by ongoing acts of racism and injustice including acts of hate during COVID perpetrated...
Anti-Racism Coalition Welcomes New Members
The Fraser Valley Human Dignity Coalition (FVHDC), a local group addressing issues of racism, is holding its quarterly meeting on June 18th. The group meets to discuss reported cases of racism and discrimination, hear presentations and discuss community issues,...
Benefits for Employers Connecting with STRIDE
The Archway STRIDE for Older Workers program has an exciting new initiative to help match local employers with great candidates who have completed STRIDE. Can your business lend a hand? Participating can help efficiently match employers with qualified, pre-screened...
55+ Senior Employment Program Moves Online
The Archway Skills Training Results in Directed Education and Employment (STRIDE) program has moved their program to an effective combination of online/tele-consults and in person to keep supporting clients during the COVID-19 pandemic. STRIDE helps unemployed or...
Prospera Secures $10K Grant for Archway Mental Wellness Programs
Thank you to Prospera Credit Union who recently secured a grant from Concentra for $10,000, on behalf of Archway Community Services. The funds will support mental health programs at Archway including counselling for youth and families. “The Prospera community team...
Social Justice in the Time of COVID-19
By Megan Capp, Manager of Social Justice, Seniors and Housing at Archway Community ServicesWe are living in unprecedented times. Globally, COVID-19 swiftly and drastically impacted all of our lives. We worry about our economic livelihood. We struggle with the...
Expanded Services for Seniors Available Amidst COVID-19
As the seriousness of COVID-19 was becoming rapidly apparent, Archway Community Services saw an opportunity to act. With a longstanding history of supporting our community in times of crisis, existing resources in the Seniors Department were quickly deployed...
Mental Health Supports and Resources
The COVID-19 pandemic is an unprecedented situation that is challenging the mental health of virtually everyone. Even if you're not concerned about the health of a loved one or loss of employment, changes to your daily routines and inability to socialize and conduct...
COVID-19 Information for Kids
Many of us are experiencing uncertainty right now in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. People with children are also noting their increased worry and confusion over school closures, cancellation of plans and other changes and restrictions on daily routines. There...
Archway Income Tax Program Suspended
To help keep our staff and clients safe during COVID-19, we have suspended the Volunteer Income Tax Program for 2020. The due date for filing individual tax returns has been extended to June 1, 2020. Taxpayers will have until September 1, 2020 to pay any 2019 income...
COVID-19 Update
Archway is currently open but running limited or modified services during the COVID-19 outbreak. We have some staff in the office and we also have staff working remotely to assist clients online or via phone to limit in-person interactions. We are doing our part to...
Newcomers Gather to Celebrate International Women’s Day
Art, music and dance highlight the cultures of many women who now call Abbotsford home. The Archway Community Connections program hosted its 8th annual Ladies’ Night on March 6th, bringing together 200 immigrant and refugee women from dozens of countries to celebrate...
Archway’s Response to COVID-19
Please click here for our March 18th, 2020 update on Archway programs and services during COVID-19. Last Updated: March 16th While the risk of COVID-19 (coronavirus) in Canada remains low, Archway is keeping a close eye on the developing situation. At this point,...
Rally to Mark Sexual Exploitation Awareness Week
On Tuesday March 10th, the Abbotsford Community Action Team (ACAT) will host their annual public rally against the sexual exploitation of children and youth. “The rally is an opportunity to raise continued awareness that exploitation of youth is happening right...
Rick Hansen Secondary Team Wins First Place at Environmental Mind Grind 2020
Rick Hansen Secondary returned as the champion of the seventh annual Environmental Mind Grind competition on February 26th. The Environment Mind Grind is an academic trivia-based competition with a focus on environmental awareness, hosted by the Abbotsford Mission...
STRIDE Employment Forum
Please join our STRIDE (Skills Training Results in Directed Education / Employment) for Older Workers program in their first Employment Forum on March 2, 2020! This forum will be an opportunity for people 55+ (existing clients, potential STRIDE participants and anyone...