Building community one brick at a time

By Michael Gorman

THE VANGUARD

NovaNewsNow.com

The Split Rock Learning Centre wants to see the community make a lasting commitment to the area's youth. They believe the best way you can do that is with bricks.

Members of the group, dedicated to offering opportunities to young people in transition, approached town council last week to discuss a project that would see people purchasing a brick to go towards a walkway. The group would like to see the walkway in Frost Park, however plans are still at a preliminary stage. Bricks would cost $100, with about half of that going to expenses of the project, and each brick would be engraved with the name of a young people in the community — the future citizens of Yarmouth.

Sue Hutchins is working with the group and in charge of fundraising. She said she was attracted to what the group was trying to do in the community. Hutchins said the group has tried to put on several programs but money was always a factor that got in the way. She said Stepping Stones, a program offered by Split Rock that teaches young people skills such as resume writing, interview skills and organizations skills, was developed as a program that could act as a starting point without requiring a lot of capital.

"We decided we'd do what is always a wise decision — do what we have the capacity to do, sort of start at the bottom and let the thing grow as it will," she said.

Hutchins said she was pleased with the meeting with council. She said securing funding for the project is important because she sees it as the kind of project that could have a lasting impact on the community.

"I'd like to see everybody in this area giving a little bit of money constantly towards the youth of the town," she said. "To run the Stepping Stones program — $50,000 a year would do it in terms of salary. That's what it would take for the program that we've got in place."

Beyond plans for the walkway fundraiser, the group has received access to the Notre Dame Community Centre on Queen Street through St. Ambrose Church. Hutchins said the plan is to use the facility as a drop-in centre. Starting this week it will be available to anyone who wants to come by on Wednesday nights from 6-9 p.m. The plan is to add Saturday mornings to the schedule, as well, in a couple of weeks. The group is hiring an employee to be at the drop-in centre while it's opened so people stopping by will have someone to talk to or get help with problems as well as making sure things run smoothly.

Despite the focus of the group, they continue to struggle with negative stigmas or perceptions. What is unique about the group is that it draws people from a variety of backgrounds — the private sector, churches, government agencies and the community — with the aim of working together as a community to give all young people opportunities and help when it's needed.

The group has no religious ties or corporate ties. Rather, they are focused on the idea of people from various backgrounds coming together for a common goal.

Still, some people — both around area council tables and in the community — wonder if the province should be paying for this. Hutchins said that while that is a valid question what is more important is that, at the moment, no one is doing it. So if a group within the community wants to step up to the plate, she said, then it's a positive step.

"It should be a provincial (matter)," said Hutchins. "(But) it takes a village to raise a child."