Highbanks Society Executive Director Speaks At February General Meeting!

Cecilia de la Rocha, the Executive Director of Highbanks Society Independent Living for Parenting Youth (Highbanks), was the guest speaker at the February General Meeting. Her presentation "Highbanks Society - Holistically Supporting Calgary's Parenting Youth" was a fabulous tool that helped Junior League of Calgary (JLC) members better appreciate the extent of resources that are available to the young mothers in addition to the JLC MUM program currently being offered for Highbanks residents.


Cecilia informed us that Highbanks provides a safe, stable, affordable place to live for young mothers. In addition to serving as the landlord for eight units at two facilities, Highbanks provides a nurturing environment where the young mother can receive peer and community support. Young mothers may be residents for up to two years.

With the help of Highbanks staff, each young mom creates a plan that outlines specific educational, career and personal goals, and each mother is responsible for taking the necessary steps towards reaching them. The plan includes timelines for attaining these goals and methods for tracking progress towards their achievement. Highbanks staff provide support, encouragement and access to community resources to assist the young mothers in their efforts. Ultimately, however, each mother must navigate her own journey to success.

JLC members learned that Highbanks offers the young mothers many in-house opportunities for learning and growth. Some opportunities, like the JLC MUM program, require attendance by the residents; attending other opportunities are discretionary. In addition to learning and growth, the programs also include fun activities that are intended to rejuvenate these moms.

Cecilia brings to Highbanks Society her personal experience of teenage motherhood along with more than 17 years of professional work experience. A Civil Engineering graduate from the University of Toronto, Cecilia started volunteering with Highbanks in the spring of 2008, working with the residents on money-management and personal budgeting. This opportunity led to her position as the Highbanks’ Program Director in September 2008. In June 2010, Cecilia was appointed its Executive Director.
 
Highbanks Society Webpage

Junior League of Calgary's MUM Program Information

Another JLC Member in the News!

JLC Sustainer and Past President Julie Johnston served as co-chair of National Philanthropy Week.   Here is a photo from the insert in the Calgary Herald, the week of November 11-19, 2010. 

MUM Program - Valentine Fun!

Another fun-filled and successful MUM session was held on February 15th, 2011. The theme was Vegetarian Valentine!  Fiery Squash Chili and Mushroom-Gouda Melts were served along with Red Velvet Cake for dessert. Eight moms and two volunteers from Highbanks Society attended the session.  

JLC member, Dani Flowerday, introduced the potential health benefits of some of the ingredients used (eg. beans, tomatoes, herbs and spices). She also stressed the importance of building strong bones at an early age and distributed and worked with the moms on the Calcium Calculator, a worksheet that calculates the daily intake of calcium from the foods we eat. The moms also took home a whisk and garlic press as gifts for this session.

Treasure Trunk Program at Brenda’s House - Update!

Our first 2011 session on January 12 focused on 'Kids in the Arts" (KARTS) and 'Kids in Motion & Music'(KIMM). The session opened with our Theme Song and the opening of a small treasure trunk to discover clues about what the activities will be. The children were soon singing and dancing, tossing bean bags, talking about art, and making their own pictures. Several mothers with young babies were engaged in a spontaneous offering of our "Babies In the Story" (BITS) component, with JLC volunteers reading stories, singing songs and getting the mothers to share their favourite songs as well.

Annual Campaign a Success!

Through the generosity of many Active and Sustaining Junior League of Calgary Members, the 2010 Annual Campaign has surpassed the $9000 mark! Your donations allow us to continue improving the lives of Calgary children and families, to train women to be capable volunteers and civic leaders and to promote voluntarism in our community.  Thank you for your support! 

MUM Program at Highbanks Society - Update!

The Junior League of Calgary is partnering with Highbanks Society to implement the "Moms U Matter (MUM)" program to help young mothers learn about "Healthy and Active Living" through the practice of good nutrition and physical activity.

The fall 2010 sessions of MUM were very well received by Highbanks Society participants. Each session is a flurry of chopping, cooking, chatting and cleaning up. The evenings just fly by and end with a delicious, shared, sit down dinner. Our JLC members have been invaluable to these evenings, knowing just when to jump in and lend a hand!

The September session featured "Fall Flavours" with a multilayered "Shepherd‘s Pie" made by the moms and topped off with a delicious peach crisp.

In October we shared one of our family‘s favourite recipes, "Honey Mustard Chicken", which was served with brown rice and salad, all made by the moms, and chocolate cake for dessert.

Our November session fell on the blustery night of an early winter storm. The moms and volunteers braved the weather and enjoyed the spicy heat of the "Fast Chili" (see recipe) they created, complimented by volunteer-made cornmeal muffins.

We facilitated another successful MUM event on January 11, 2011 at the Co-Op Downtown Market kitchen. The menu was dubbed "Superfoods" by the committee. It consisted of Baked Salmon with tomatoes, spinach and mushrooms, served with a quinoa salad and fresh whole wheat French loaf. The dessert was Frozen Cappuccino.

MUM program participants hard at work preparing baked salmon

JLC Member in the News!

JLC Sustainer Stephanie Felesky was honoured for her lifetime of philanthropy both on the cover of Business in Calgary, December 2010 and in the National Philanthropy Day insert in the Calgary Herald published during the week of November 11-19, 2010.  Great work Stephanie!