Report to Community: 2023-2024

Over the past year, Westcoast Family Centres has demonstrated remarkable adaptability and resilience, akin to many of our peers in the sector. We’ve navigated numerous transitions and are immensely proud of our staff, client families, and community for collectively surmounting obstacles. Our heartfelt gratitude goes out to our dedicated front-line and administrative staff, leadership, board members, community allies, benefactors, and donors who have consistently exceeded expectations to fortify the families we serve. Despite the challenges, we are confident that we are the right team for this mission.

Representing everyone at WFC, we consider it an honor to engage in the vital endeavor of fortifying families and communities. In 2022, we embraced our pledge to Reconciliation and embarked on a journey of decolonization. We’ve appointed leaders for this initiative, who have spearheaded staff training, the creation of a cultural safety assessment tool, and the establishment of our Indigenous Learning and Sharing Circle. Our dedication to this cause stems from our deep connection to the numerous Indigenous families we support, who are invaluable to us and the wider community. Our amalgamation with the Westcoast Child Care Resource Centre, our neighbors, remains robust. Looking forward, we aim to leverage this amalgamation to deliver even more value to the community.

This year, we’ve achieved most of our program and service objectives. Where we’ve fallen short, we’ve taken proactive measures to understand the reasons and identify adjustments to better meet family needs. We remain cognizant of the housing and drug crises’ effects, with our front-line team striving to assist families through these challenging circumstances. Furthermore, we prioritize our families by addressing the persistent financial challenges they face. Through our Building Blocks fund, we’ve supported numerous families with gift cards, Holiday Hampers, and other essential aid. While our financial assistance may be modest, it represents a beacon of hope and solidarity as living costs escalate. Every contribution counts.

Since setting our strategic goals for 2021-23, we’ve made significant strides in fulfilling our commitments in the following domains:

• Leadership and Partnerships: Our WFC leadership has expanded, and we’ve invested in nurturing future leaders by fostering a robust workplace culture and providing readily available staff resources. Moreover, we’ve fortified our partnerships within the sector to
  collectively offer the most efficient and effective services.
• Diversity and Inclusivity: As an employer and service provider, we’re dedicated to continuous diversity, equity, and inclusivity training, and we’re moving towards an organization-wide decolonization effort.
• Financial Sustainability: We remain vigilant custodians of our finances, ensuring long-term fiscal health and robust organizational financial systems.
• Strategic Growth: Acknowledging the ongoing uncertainty affecting many, we’ve adapted to the evolving needs of our communities. Our flexibility has enabled us to expand our programs, supporting as many individuals as possible.
• Quality and Care: As a COA-accredited agency, we persist in our pursuit of the highest standard of care by emphasizing staff training and education, routinely assessing our programs, and upholding respect and kindness as fundamental values of our service.
  

As we approach our 40th anniversary of community service next year, we eagerly anticipate the future developments for all of us at WFC. Please see the below PDF to view our full 2023-2024 Report to Community.

With warm regards,

Ann Kutcher + Shannon Svingen-Jones
Ann Kutcher, CEO
Shannon Svingen-Jones, Board President