The Barrhead and District Family and Community Support Services (FCSS) has a new youth co-ordinator.
Edith McMann, from the Dunstable area, assumed the position in mid-February, but took until the beginning of March to get organized enough to put on her first program. Until McMann assumed the position, it had been vacant for about two-and-a-half months.
“I’m really excited to be able to start my new career with youth,” she said, adding the opportunity came at the right time in her life and she was thinking about switching careers.
For the last 18 years McMann has been a legal assistant working at the Driessen De Rudder Law Office.
“I really enjoyed working there, but about a couple years ago I thought about the possibility of making a change,” she said, adding that was about the time she volunteered to help with a youth group at the United Church. “I could see some of the youth could use some extra support.”
In addition, she said as a mother of two teenage daughters in Grade 9 and 12, she could see how important having a little bit of extra attention and support can make in a child’s life.
To help make a career change McMann decided to enroll in Grant MacEwan University’s child and youth care program through distance learning. She is currently in her second year of studies.
However, it wasn’t until a friend of hers at the United Church told her about an opening for a youth co-ordinator at FCSS that she truly got excited about the possibility of being able to work with youth.
“My friend actually saw the ad in the Barrhead Leader and she asked me if I had seen it.” McMann said, admitting she hadn’t. “After I got out of church, I picked up the paper, saw the ad and started to get my application in order. The rest, as they say, is history.”
Even though McMann now has a job working with youth, she plans to continue working towards her diploma in child and youth care.
“The timing of everything actually works out really well,” she said. “All of the youth FCSS programming takes place in the late afternoon or evening after the kids get out of school. That leaves me time to study, go to school and then run the youth program.”
Currently, the majority of the youth programs are scheduled from 4 to 6 p.m. on Mondays and Fridays. In her initial three offerings McMann has organized two game nights, and a Wii video game night. In the week the Leader spoke to McMann she also organized a birdhouse making session, a movie night and a colouring night at the Barrhead Public Library.
On Tuesday, March 29, during the student spring break, she has scheduled a special early afternoon youth session. The afternoon starts at the Barrhead and District Agrena at noon for ice-skating, before moving to the Parent Link Centre shortly after 1 p.m. where attendees will help make their own lunch.
“What I’m trying to do is have a wide variety of activities,” McMann said. “Every month I want to have a game session, a physical activity of some sort and a craft.”
In addition to the Barrhead sessions, McMann has been tasked to go to Fort Assiniboine one day out of every month and put on a similar youth session.
“I am still in the planning process. I am trying to find out when, where and what type of activities were held before and what worked,” she said.
When asked what the biggest challenge has been so far, McMann said it has been getting the word out.
“Since there wasn’t a youth co-ordinator for more than two months and it took some time for me to get organized there are a lot of youth who don’t know about the youth program,” she said, adding that’s why she has been busy putting up posters and schedules at the grocery stores, the library and other prominent locations in town.
For more information about the FCSS youth program, contact McMann through the FCSS office at 780-674-3341 or [email protected].
