SSCY Centre looking for smiles

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This article was published 14/10/2014 (4191 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A former cookie factory is being transformed into a one stop shop for services for children living with special needs.  

SSCY Centre, which stands for Specialized Services for Children and Youth, will occupy the Christie’s Biscuits building at 1155 Notre Dame Ave. SSCY Centre will act as a centralized care facility, housing several integrated special needs service providers.

On Oct. 1, SSCY Centre launched its Design a Smile campaign, which encourages Manitoba youth to upload smiles, be they drawn, sculpted, photographed, etc., to designasmile.sscy.ca until Nov. 14 for a chance to receive a pizza party from Boston Pizza, among other prizes.

SSCY Centre launched its capital campaign three years ago. Capital campaign director Nicole LaTourelle said the organization has raised $3.5 million towards its $5.2-million goal, with the campaign set to end on Jan. 31, 2015. She said SSCY Centre will open its doors in 2016.

“Currently the situation is if you’re a family with a child with a disability or special needs, and you need services from different service providers, you’re going all over the city in order to obtain those services. That takes a lot of time and energy,” LaTourelle said.

“Instead of going two or three times in a week or even sometimes two or three times in a day to get services, they can go to one place. The services will be integrated and co-ordinated so in between appointments they can rest, they can relax in some of the wonderful areas that are allocated just for that. It’s a place where kids can be kids and families can be families, because right now they’re so busy going around obtaining all these different services, they don’t have the time to just be.”

SSCY Centre will house such service provider agencies as Manitoba Family Services, Rehabilitation Centre for Children, Society for Manitobans with Disabilities, Robertson Early Enrichment Program, The Movement Centre of Manitoba and Community Respite Service Inc.

Connie Hesom, 44, is a Morden, Man. resident whose son Evan has spina bifida and hydrocephalus. She said her family travels to Winnipeg two to three times a month for Evan’s appointments, with an average of two or three appointments per visit to the city.

“Once the SSCY Centre is completed we’ll be able to go and have all of Evan’s appointments in one central location,” Hesom said. “Even if it means coming into the city maybe twice a month, we don’t have to go from one end of the city to the other to try and catch appointments on time. We can just do it all in one spot.”

LaTourelle said SSCY Centre will have a relaxed, comfortable atmosphere, complete with relaxation and play areas, something Hesom is excited about.

“It gives you a peace of mind that there will be a facility available and you can go there and your child won’t be as stressed or worried,” Hesom said. “You have to have surgeries and stuff at the hospital but if you can go somewhere else where it’s more comfortable and they’re not as worried, it just makes your whole day so much better.”