Warm weather, warmer hearts

Fort Whyte

West Alexander

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This article was published 28/02/2024 (619 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Cold City, Warm Hearts event went ahead for its seventh consecutive edition this year, despite abnormally warm February temperatures.

The annual winter event — held after-hours at Fort Whyte Alive — gave over 100 young people from Rossbrook House and the Immigrant and Refugee Committee Organization of Manitoba (IRCOM) a chance to play with old and new friends in a collection of outdoor activities placed around the conservation park and educational centre.

Kids aged six and older engaged in tobogganing, snowshoeing, scavenger hunts, and bannock roasts, among other activities.

“I hope it inspires them in some way,” said Kiara Rasmussen, an after-school program manager at IRCOM.

“For me, this is the thing I like to do on the weekend. I hang out outside. So it’s nice seeing the kids in a new environment and learning new things. Hopefully they want to come back and to keep engaging in this kind of stuff.

“That’s the goal for us — to really get them a little bit out of their comfort zone, and then make it comfortable.”

Rasmussen, 23, said this was her first experience with the event, and she described it as a fun time.

“The kids are super-excited,” she said, adding that the bannock was a big draw. “And I’m really excited to meet (the folks at) Rossbrook House. I love to connect with all of them, too.”

“I think it’s a really good time to get outside,” said Asher Coombs, 15, a youth staff member at Rossbrook House. This was his first Cold City, Warm Hearts, as well. While he was there to help the younger kids, he took part in and enjoyed the activities alongside them.

“I think it’s just really nice to see smiles on their faces,” he said.

“You get to see the joy that (the kids are) having,” echoed Patricia Mainville, Rossbrook House executive director. “A lot of them are friends, they interact during the day, and they were excited to get together. They don’t (usually) get that opportunity to interact with (each other) after school because they’re all busy with their own little community. So this is a great way to bridge that and to formulate and strengthen our community.”

It’s also a great way to get the kids out of their neighbourhoods, Mainville noted, and to “venture out and be in a beautiful place,” away from whatever they may be facing at home.

“A lot of our children and youth, they’re dealing with mental health issues after COVID, and just the opportunity to get outside and play and interact with others, I think it’s a great opportunity,” Mainville continued.

“They’re kind of shocked and happy to see them (their friends),” she said, adding that it’s her favourite part of the whole experience. “They’re running up to them and they’re greeting them … That’s the part that I really enjoy.”

Mainville is a former Rossbrook House drop-in client, as are the majority of staff. She said she would have enjoyed the opportunity as a young person, and “can’t thank Fort Whyte enough” for its collaboration. Alongside staff and organizers involved in Rossbrook House and IRCOM, Fort Whyte Alive staff spent the evening co-ordinating the groups of kids.

Alongside Cold City, Warm Hearts, Rossbrook House offers all sorts of activities for youth in vulnerable situations.

Coombs’ favourites are the regular van rides for the older kids, he said, to convenience stores like 7-Eleven, where he can hang out with friends his age.

“It sounds really basic, but it’s really fun since you’re with your friends. (You) just go for a nice ride around the city,” he said.

For more information on Rossbrook House and IRCOM, visit their respective websites: rossbrookhouse.ca and ircom.ca