Running Head: The Bethany Hope Centre 1
The Bethany Hope Centre 1
The Bethany Hope Centre 1
Community Service Learning Agency Research Assignment: The Bethany Hope Centre
Rachel Kabamba
Algonquin College
FAM1255
Professor: Michael Black
2018-09-21
Community Service Learning Agency Research Assignment: The Bethany Hope Centre
Introduction
There are several community service agencies throughout Ottawa that are placed to help those in need. One such organization is the Bethany Hope Centre, which is in place to support young parents and children. In this research paper, I will examine the function and role of the Bethany Hope Centre, exploring points such as the organization’s history, mandate, contact, clientele, funding, and services and programs.
History, Mandate, and Contact
Originally, the Bethany Hope Centre was created by the Salvation Army as a maternity home in 1913 (Bethany Hope Centre, n.d.-a). It operated as a maternity home, partnering with the next-door Grace Hospital to provide services to single women in need, and expecting and new mothers. However, between 1994 and 1995, the Bethany Hope Centre faced financial issues, which forced the centre to close several of its residential beds (Bethany Hope Centre, n.d.-a). Following this, the centre joined with several other agencies to create the Young/Single Parents Support Network (Bethany Hope Centre, n.d.-a), which is how the centre began providing services to young parents and families. Coming to the present, the Bethany Hope centre has consolidated these ideas and values into one organization and now helps young single parents, both women and men, and also help young couples with children to support them through difficult situations.
According to the Bethany Hope Centre, their mission is to “support, provide, and enable adults, youth and children across the Ottawa Region by building services, partnerships and faith-based community spirit with a focus on young parents and their children” (Bethany Hope Centre, n.d.-b). The centre has a vison for communities to be spiritually, physically, mentally, emotionally, and financially healthy (Bethany Hope Centre, n.d.-b). Some of the values that the centre seeks to embody in their actions include compassion, community, and change, among several others (Bethany Hope Centre, n.d.-b). The centre’s focus on young parents and children provides a place for them to turn to in hard and stressful situations and also provides support.
Previously, the Bethany Hope Centre was located on 1140 Wellington Street but currently it is located 820 Woodroffe Avenue in Ottawa, Ontario. The centre can be contacted by phone at (613) 725-1733 or by email at info@bethanyhopecentre.ca (Bethany Hope Centre, n.d.-a)
Services and Programs
The Bethany Hope Centre provides a wide range of services to help improve families’ well-being. The centre provides services and programs for mothers, fathers, and also activities for children as well. Their services and programs are arranged under three categories. The first category “Child and Youth development programs” includes food, health, infant and child development, and education services (Bethany Hope Centre, n.d.-c). The second category “Young Parent Programs” includes counselling services, training on budgeting and home management, employment support, and special fathering programs (Bethany Hope Centre, n.d.-d). The final category, “Spiritual Life Programs” offers faith-based services and focuses on spiritual care (Bethany Hope Centre, n.d.-e).
One of the programs that they run for mothers is called “Buns in the Oven” (Bethany Hope Centre, n.d.-a) This prenatal nutrition program runs weekly for pregnant women, and their partners can also attend. The women can come as soon as they know that they’re pregnant and can take part in the program until their child is six months old (Bethany Hope Centre, n.d.-a). The program provides information about healthy eating, how to have a healthy pregnancy, eating, how to prepare for child birth, and also gives tips for breast feeding (Bethany Hope Centre, n.d.-a). Mothers are able to cook and eat with other mothers, learn about pregnancy and children, and may also receive free food to take with them (Bethany Hope Centre, n.d.-a). This program not only teaches how to take care of children, but also teaches mother’s how to take care of themselves and teaches them about self-love and self-care through preparing healthy meals for both their children and themselves.
Sometimes community services and organizations such as the Bethany Hope Centre may exclude young fathers or place them on the sidelines (Bethany Hope Centre, n.d.-d). The Bethany Hope Centre recognizes that fathers are an important part of children’s lives, and that their involvement is important to the well-being of children (Bethany Hope Centre, n.d.-d). To answer to this issue, the centre provides programs and support services specifically geared towards fathers. These services include father specific parenting support, employment and education support, various forms of counselling, and health care and cooking classes (Bethany Hope Centre, n.d.-d). Through these father specific programs, the Bethany Hope Centre provides training to fathers, and spaces where they can be acknowledged and find support.
Another program that the Bethany Hope Centre offers is the “Entrepreneurship and Employment Training Program”, which runs under “Hope Ventures” (Bethany Hope Centre, n.d.-d). According to the Bethany Hope Centre, Hope Ventures “encourage young parents to explore and advance with the world of work and entrepreneurship” (Bethany Hope Centre, n.d.-d). One participant, Raven Chopwick, opened a home bakery selling vegan and gluten-friendly goods (Henderson, 2015). Through the 12-week training program, young parents get class and/or one-on-one support to learn the basics of starting a small business or preparing for employment.
Funding
As there was not a lot of information about their funding online, I took the liberty of contacting the centre to receive some more information. The Bethany Hope Centre relies heavily on donations, which can be financial donations or gently used items. Money can be donated online through their website, or by mail. While the centre sometimes raises money by putting together and holding events, but the majority of funding comes from donations done by individuals in the community. The centre also receives support by partnering with other organizations, such as Ottawa Food Bank, Telus, and Salvation Army, among several others. The centre has also received support from government organizations such as the Ontario Trillium Foundation, the Ontario Ministry of Children and Youth Services, the Ontario Ministry of Community and Social Services, and the City of Ottawa (Bethany Hope Centre, n.d.-b). The Bethany Hope Centre remains a non-profit organization, meaning that the money they raise is used to further their mission.
Conclusion
To conclude, the Bethany Hope Centre is a community organization that provides support to young parents and families in need. Through its various services and programs, it provides a place for young parents and families to be acknowledged and develop skills that will help them in employment, entrepreneurship, taking care of their children and themselves, among several other transferrable skills. The Bethany Hope Centre has been working in the Ottawa Region for some time now and is an example of a great organization that is working to help the community.
References
Bethany Hope Centre. (n.d.-a). The History of the Bethany Hope Centre. Retrieved 18 September 2018 from http://www.bethanyhopecentre.org/our-history.html
Bethany Hope Centre. (n.d-b). Our Partners. Retrieved 18 September 2018 from http://www.bethanyhopecentre.org/our-partners-.html
Bethany Hope Centre. (n.d.-c). Child and Youth Development Programs. Retrieved 18 September 2018 from http://www.bethanyhopecentre.org/child-and-youth-development-programs.html
Bethany Hope Centre (n.d.-d) Young Parent Programs. Retrieved 18 September 2018 from http://www.bethanyhopecentre.org/young-parent-programs.html
Bethany Hope Centre (n.d.-e). Spiritual Life Programs. Retrieved 18 September 2018 from http://www.bethanyhopecentre.org/spiritual-life-programs.html
Henderson, K. (2015, October 31). Entrepreneur program aimed at young parents gets funding boost. The Ottawa Citizen. Retrieved 18 September 2018 from https://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-news/city-announces-funding-for-young-family-employment-initiative
