Visitation monitoring important, delicate work

Volunteers
By: AV Kitching Posted: 6:00 AM CDT Monday, Jun. 29, 2026

On a busy Saturday morning, in a building on River Avenue, a parent and their child sit in a room stocked with games and puzzles, engrossed in a board game while Deanna Jones observes them.

Read this article for free:

or

Already have an account? Log in here »

To continue reading, please subscribe:

*First annual payment billed as $205.00 + GST for one year. This annual subscription will automatically renew at $233.00 + GST every 52 weeks (10% off the regular annual price of $259.35). Offer available to new and qualified returning subscribers only. Cancel any time.

On a busy Saturday morning, in a building on River Avenue, a parent and their child sit in a room stocked with games and puzzles, engrossed in a board game while Deanna Jones observes them.

Read unlimited articles for free today:

or

Already have an account? Log in here »

On a busy Saturday morning, in a building on River Avenue, a parent and their child sit in a room stocked with games and puzzles, engrossed in a board game while Deanna Jones observes them.

Jones, 51, is an educational assistant with a decade of experience working with children. She’s recently completed a degree in psychology and Indigenous studies at the U of M, and in the autumn she will begin her Master of Social Work in Indigenous Knowledges.

Today however she is a volunteer visitation monitor at Winnipeg Children’s Access Agency (WCAA).

MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS
Deanna Jones, a volunteer at Winnipeg Children’s Access Agency, spends her shift observing interactions between parents and their children during supervised visitations. — MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS

Deanna Jones, a volunteer at Winnipeg Children’s Access Agency, spends her shift observing interactions between parents and their children during supervised visitations.

The WCAA is a trauma-informed independent and visitation exchange service with a strong focus on the well-being of children involved in high-conflict separations when there has been evidence of interpersonal violence.

Services are not intended for children currently in the active care of CFS.

Established in 1996, WCAA is a protected place for non-custodial parents to spend time with their offspring in a supervised setting.

There is no contact between the parent with custody and the one who is visiting. The custodial parent drops their child off at the building where they meet the visiting parent.

They have exactly two hours together, during which time they can choose to remain in the same room or check out any of the 11 other rooms, all of which have been set up for play, in the building.

One room is packed with stuffed animals and Barbie dolls. Another has plastic kitchens and tool benches. Yet another has been stocked with board games and puzzles while a couple more have PlayStation consoles plugged in and ready to play. There is a craft room for making a giant mess, a music room with a keyboard, and various other instruments.

There’s also a backyard with basketball hoops, sidewalk chalk and a playhouse — but whether they remain in the same room, change to another room or choose to go outside, a visitation monitor will be with them at all times.

At the end of the visit, the child is picked up by their custodial parent.

Volunteer opportunities

The following is a list of volunteer opportunities for Winnipeg and surrounding areas. For more information about these listings, contact the organization directly. Volunteer Manitoba does not place volunteers with organizations but can help people find opportunities. To learn more about its programs and services, go to wfp.to/volunteers or call 204-477-5180.

Misericordia Health Centre is seeking volunteers to share knitting basics with eager to learn clients on Wednesdays from 10:30 a.m. to noon in July and August. To apply, email volunteer@misericordia.mb.ca, call 204-788-8134 or apply online at http://wfp.to/iMf. Deadline is July 5.

Inclusion Winnipeg invites you to join their board of directors. Inclusion Winnipeg is a registered charity which has been dedicated to making life better for children and adults living with intellectual disabilities. It is seeking enthusiastic and dedicated individuals with backgrounds in governance, finance and accounting, fundraising and marketing. Successful candidates should have a commitment to the organization’s mission, and be able to attend and actively participate in monthly board meetings. For more information and to submit your application, please contact Caryn Birch, executive director at cbirch@inclusionwinnipeg.org. Deadline is July 17.

MS Canada is seeking individuals to join its team to support the MS Bike – East St. Paul, which will take place Aug. 22-23. Volunteer assistance is needed throughout the event to ensure it runs smoothly and that participants have an enjoyable experience while biking to raise crucial funds for those affected by MS. Volunteers are required on Saturday and/or Sunday, Aug. 22-23, with shifts ranging from two to eight hours depending on the shift and level of commitment. For more information, visit the volunteer website and sign up directly by Aug. 17: http://wfp.to/iMs.

Siloam Mission requires kitchen volunteers to help them prepare and serve meals for the community. Shifts are two to three hours long and volunteers must have the ability to stand for two or more hours and be able to work with a team. No experience required. Apply online: http://wfp.to/iMK, by phone (204-956-4344, ext. 2210) or in person at 300 Princess St. Deadline is Dec. 31.

The Bike Zone needs volunteer bike mechanics instructors to help community members learn how to fix their own bicycles. They are looking for volunteers with basic bicycle mechanic skills and a mechanical aptitude but also with patience, compassion and the ability to work with people of many varied backgrounds. The application process consists of you showing up to one of our open shifts and announcing to the volunteers on that shift that you would like to begin volunteering. They are a welcoming safe(r) space and love to include new people. For more information, email bikezonewinnipeg@gmail.com. Deadline is Dec. 31.

Taste of Manitoba is seeking volunteers to ensure an enjoyable festival experience. Duties include greeting guests, monitoring entrances, answering questions, directing visitors, managing ticket transactions, and serving non-alcoholic beverages. Volunteers should be friendly, reliable, and comfortable in a fast-paced environment. The festival runs from Sept. 3-7, with a variety of shifts available. Volunteers must be 16 or older and capable of standing for long periods, with some tasks allowing for sitting. Apply by email: kimr@mrfa.mb.ca. Deadline is Aug. 1.

The Winnipeg Fringe Theatre Festival needs volunteers to make the annual event a success. With more than 750 volunteers needed, the festival seeks helpers able to volunteer for a minimum of four shifts (about 4-6 hours each) over the 12-day festival. Duties range from selling tickets and ushering to assisting at the Kids Fringe area, offering a great way to meet new people, help revitalize the downtown and learn about all the best shows! There are opportunities for volunteers of all ages (12-plus) to get involved from July 15 to 26. Apply online: bttr.im/dqit1 or by email: volunteers@winnipegfringe.com. Deadline is July 10.

Arabic-speaking volunteers are needed to join Together Project’s Welcome Group Program. Together Project seeks Bengali and/or Rohingya speaking volunteers. The program matches refugee newcomers with “welcome groups” of three to five volunteers for three to six months. Volunteers receive training to provide social support to newly arrived refugees focused on language learning, finding employment, navigating city services, and building social connections. Apply online: bttr.im/a772o or learn more at togetherproject.ca/volunteer. Questions? Contact Alejandra Reverditto Galvez, Manitoba programs lead, at alejandra@togetherproject.ca or 431-557-7852. Deadline is Dec. 31.

The Canadian Red Cross needs volunteers. The Red Cross can show you how to help when disaster strikes. Apply at wfp.to/0pE, volunteer@redcross.ca or 1-844-818-2155.

A monitor’s primary role is to observe and document interactions between parent and child and to maintain the safety and well-being of the child, or children, as there can sometimes be more than one young person in the room.

“I view it as supporting the relationship between parent and child,” Jones explains.

“When I first started, my training taught me monitors just sit there silently taking notes without interacting with the families. Now, I’ve been in that position as a child and having another adult in the room staring at you and then writing things down is terrifying. That approach never worked for me, so I actually interact with my families. Not enough to get in the way of their visit, but I interact with the kids and the parents because I want them to see me as a person who is there as a friend. Not to spy on them, but to help them along.”

To keep records accurate, monitors must write only what they see. This throws up a unique challenge; a monitor cannot use assumptive language or interpret interactions emotionally. They must suspend all judgment.

“There’s so many things we don’t realize are assumptive language,” Jones explains. “For example writing something like ‘child ran into the room and yelled mommy’ … you wouldn’t think it but there is some assumptive language there.

“Instead you would write ‘so-and-so entered the foyer at this time.’ I always tell new monitors, ‘your best friend is so-and-so said, and make it a direct quote’. And you’re not putting any punctuation in there other than a period.”

Monitor shifts are in three-hour blocks. Volunteers arrive 30 minutes prior to the two-hour visitation slot, and remain for another half-hour after to complete their reports. The agency also facilitates supervised exchanges.

“When a custody swap happens — whether one parent has primary custody or they share custody — things can get tense. Some parents simply prefer to handle the handoff on neutral territory. They want a safe space,” Jones says.

“Agencies like the WCAA provide an absolutely essential service. Without them that vital parenting time between a parent and kid might not happen at all. The WCAA genuinely takes a trauma-informed approach. Yet the reality is that the environment can induce or exacerbate that trauma, too. So I think we have a real responsibility to do it right,” Jones says.

The WCAA is currently seeking volunteer visitation monitors. To learn more about WCAA visit wcaa.ca or contact the volunteer co-ordinator at volunteers@wcaa.ca.

If you know a special volunteer, please contact AV.Kitching@freepress.mb.ca

AV Kitching
Reporter

AV Kitching is an arts and life writer at the Free Press. She has been a journalist for more than two decades and has worked across three continents writing about people, travel, food, and fashion. Read more about AV.

Every piece of reporting AV produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press‘s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press’s history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates.

Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber.

Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.

AV Kitching
Reporter