Program that helps youth have a safe place needs a little help from the community
Last year, a destructive electrical fire resulted in severe damage to the Youth for Christ building in Selkirk. Now, after the damage has been tallied, it is going to require some community fundraising to get the organization back into its own building, but they are ready to take on the challenge.
“Youth for Christ is an interdenominational ministry, and we work with the community and local churches to meet kids’ needs,” said Teresa Galashan, program director for Youth for Christ Selkirk.
Youth for Christ Selkirk is a is a satellite location of YFC Winnipeg and have helped out our community for the past few decades through a variety of programs that help youths in our community. For example, to combat food insecurity, they’ve teamed up with Our Daily Bread Soup Kitchen to offer a free lunch program to junior high students. They also have a drop-in for grades 7 to 12 students, and they’re helping grades 4 to 6 students with their after-school program.
“What we offer is free programming to Selkirk and area youth who might typically not be able to access extracurricular activities, and it’s really a warm, welcoming spot that the community youth know they can come (to). A lot of the feedback that we get from youth is that it’s a safe, inviting space that they can call their own. And so, whether we offer official programs or, years ago, we used to do canoe trips and field trips and outings. It’s all intended to make sure that it’s accessible and free and available for youth,” said Ryan Galashan, former program director for Youth for Christ Selkirk.
All of that programming for our community’s youth was thrown into a bit of chaos when an electrical fire started in their building last fall.
“On September 15, (2024), an electrical fire started in our building on a Sunday afternoon, and we just, we got a call and came in. The building was just engulfed in smoke, and we were told that, basically, we couldn’t use the building anymore because of the damage,” said Teresa.
Ryan said that watching the fire department do their best to put out the fire was devastating.
“We had just finished upgrading the kitchen and (we’re) just always taking steps to make that space inside fresh, and (there were) new murals painted by a very talented young lady. Just watching this all unfold. That was devastating, because this was our space to offer the kids, their space really, and it was terrible to watch that,” he said.
Teresa said that they posted on social media about what had happened letting people know that they were going to have to come up with a new plan to continue programming, and they received the help they needed to keep going quickly.
“The Friendship Center contacted me immediately and said that we could use their drop-in space that they weren’t currently using,” she said.
They said goodbye to their old space by having a campfire outside the previous location as a final drop-in event and then accepted the Selkirk Friendship Centre’s generous offer, meaning that there was no pause in programming for our local youths.
“The biggest blessing is we’ve been able to continue to offer our programs to kids through this last year, and we haven’t had to stop. So that’s really wonderful. And we do miss having our own space, but we’re thankful that we’re still able to connect with kids despite that,” said Teresa.
The weekly after-school programming for the grade 4-6 kids and the evening drop in program for the grade 7 to 12 kids have continued, but the lunch program has been a bit difficult to continue in the way it was going before. Previously they picked up the food from the soup kitchen and brought it to their building, but now they are going to the Our Daily Bread Soup Kitchen to be with the kids.
“It’s still wonderful getting to connect with them, but it just looks different, and we’re looking forward to beginning to host (lunches again) in particular and giving kids a space that is their own,” said Teresa.
To do that, they have had to make plans to demolish their building and rebuild, which are well on their way.
“We’ve had blueprints made. We’ve got the permits and variances from the City. We have arranged for somebody to do the demolition, and the main thing that we’re waiting on is (fundraising). The total project, including all contents, and landscaping, and everything, we need to raise $1.8 million,” said Teresa.
They luckily have already gotten a start on that with grant applications that they hope to hear back from, but they still have a long way to go before they hit their goal, and so, they are hoping that the community can help get them on their way.
Right now, they are planning some fundraisers, but the easiest way people can help them achieve their goal is to donate online at yfc.ca/selkirk/building-for-the-future.
You can also keep up with their social media at www.instagram.com/yfcselkirk or www.facebook.com/YFCSelkirk to find out about any future fundraising that the organization will be doing.
The Galashans feel that it’s very important that they are able to continue to provide this space to kids in Selkirk.
“When a community provides helpful care and a sense of community and belonging, then teenagers thrive. What we’ve seen is that teenagers are resilient, but the existence of a drop-in, like the Youth for Christ drop-in Center, has made such an impact on their trajectory for life and their families. We’ve just seen that over and over and over again that a building like this is not just a building, it’s a place where they know they’re going to come and encounter adults who care about them, and listen to them, who see them. It extends beyond the relationships that happen right in the building; it’s forging this sense of community through all of Selkirk,” said Ryan.
If a financial donation isn’t something that you are able to do, they are also asking people to tell their friends what’s happening.
“What really could help is just people spreading the word on social media because everybody knows somebody. (We hope to) just be able to broaden our network a little bit with resources and ideas of how to raise the funds,” said Teresa.
