Surrounded by Cedar

Effective July 7, 2008 our new address is
#303 - 3995 Quadra Street in the Saanich Plaza.
Our email, phone, and fax number are the same.

May 30, 2008
Community Meeting
Purpose: To share information regarding the delay in transfer of Urban Aboriginal children to Surrounded By Cedar Child and Family Services
Victoria Native Friendship Centre Gymnasium, 231 Regina Avenue, Victoria BC
Time: 12:00pm to 3:00pm
Lunch provided. Parking is limited.
Contact Samantha Sam assistant@sccfs.com for more information.

May 28, 2008
SCCFS Family Council Meeting
Purpose: Opportunity for family and community members to learn more about and join the Family Advisory Council for Surrounded By Cedar.
1031 Vancouver Street, Victoria BC
Time: 5:00pm to 7:00pm
Dinner provided. Street parking.
Contact Corrina or Desiree for more information.

April 22 2008
Elders Meeting
Time: 12:00pm (lunch provided) Location: Surrounded By Cedar CFS - 1031 Vancouver Street
Contact Samantha Sam assistant@sccfs.com for more information.

March 26 2008
4th Planning meeting for our International Foster Care Conference Bid Proposal
Time: 1 PM - 2 PM Location: Surrounded By Cedar CFS
Contact Shelly Johnson shelly@sccfs.com for more information

2008 February News

February 27 2008
1st Planning meeting for our 2008 Annual Aboriginal Back to School Community Picnic Volunteers
Time: Noon - 1 PM Location: Surrounded By Cedar CFS - 1031 Vancouver Street.
Contact Maria Sampare maria@sccfs.com for more information.

February 19, 2008
3rd Planning meeting for our International Foster Care Conference Bid Proposal
Time: 1 PM - 3 PM Location: Surrounded By Cedar CFS
Contact Shelly Johnson shelly@sccfs.com for more information
Click here to download a copy of the minutes from this meeting.

February 15, 2008
"Moccasin Shuffle" event for Pro D Day held at Mungo Martin House, 10am to 4pm
Click here for an information flyer and here for a registration form.

January 18, 2008
Parents and caregivers of Indigenous children and youth that were registered to receive, or received a backpack of school supplies at our annual Aboriginal Back to School Picnic held in August 2007, will soon receive a letter and gift cards for clothing. Each eligible school aged child to age 11 will receive a $25 Wal-Mart gift certificate and each eligible school aged youth between 12-18 years will receive a $50 gift certificate from Levi's Stores.

January 17, 2008
Click here to download a copy of the January 2008 Community Recommendations report "Improving the Educational Outcomes of Indigenous Children in Care".

You can also view a letter sent to Premier Gordon Campbell by our agency about this report if you click here.

December 18, 2007 Time: Noon - 2:30 PM
Event: All Advisory Council Meeting
Topic: Improving the Educational Outcomes of Indigenous Children in Care
Lunch: Provided - please RSVP to 383-2990 or email assistant@sccfs.com
(Elders, Youth, Family, Professional Services Council Members)
Event is also open to interested community members, foster parents, youth in care and educational reps.
Click here to download the Something Happened On Our Way to Graduation report (PDF 51KB).
Click here to downlaod the Surrounded By Cedar CEO Summary Report on Educational Outcomes (PDF 32.6KB).
Click here to download a copy of the invitation letter for this gathering (PDF 58.4KB).

December 13, 2007
Event: Surrounded By Cedar and Levi's Store of Victoria (completed)
(1205 Government Street) Enter Year 2 of Partnership to Support Indigenous children and families to stay in school
Thank you to Levi's stores of Victoria for their generous contribution to our children and families. Watch the Victoria News on Wednesday December 19 for the newspaper article (it will also be posted on our website).

December 12, 2007
Event: Winter Feast for Aboriginal Children living in Foster Care (completed)
Thank you to all people that contributed to this wonderful evening! We thank the family members that attended, Grama and Grampa Cedar Claws (Nella and Alec Nelson) for volunteering to visit and give the gifts to all the children, our volunteers that set up our Lil' Cedar House, arts and crafts and gingerbread makers, Unity Drummers and Singers, our fabulous cooks and our colleagues at Ni/tu'O Child and Family Services for coming out to support the children. Special thanks to the Lutheran congregation for sharing your beautiful space with us, our generous community member (who prefers to remain anonymous) for purchasing gifts for the children, staff and board members for contributing your time, effort and energy to make this a special evening for the children and their families. Corrina tells us that pictures will be ready for pick up on Monday afternoon. Hy chka!

November 20 - 21, 2007
Caring Across Boundaries is a project funded by the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society of Canada, and is designed to facilitate collaboration between First Nations child and family services agencies and the not-for-profit / voluntary sector. One outcome of this workshop was the creation of a "Toolkit for Collaboration," developed through group activities and the reflections of the organizing committee. Outcomes of this reflection include a better understanding of the barriers to collaboration in Victoria, the identification of needs or pressing community issues that require attention, and the articulation of "essential features of collaboration" from a local Coast Salish perspective.
For more information, please contact Lisa at Surrounded By Cedar: 250.383.2990 / Email: lisa@sccfs.com

By Rebecca Aldous - Victoria News - November 16, 2007

Shelly Johnson, left, Monica Patten and Peter Walkenhorst came together for a transatlantic community foundation network exchange this week.

by Rebecca Aldous/News staff

Victoria conference focuses in on Vital Signs’ international success

A global entourage has gathered in Victoria to learn how to measure a community’s pulse.

Representatives from community foundations as far away as Germany congregated in Victoria for a Transatlantic Community Foundation Network exchange. Their focus was on the Canadian creation, Vital Signs, an annual community report card which rates a region’s status in 10 areas – such as education, environment, arts and culture.

“It is too early to say whether putting these reports out will bring long lasting change, but we think it will,” said Monica Patten, Community Foundation of Canada president.

Vital Signs was started by the Toronto Community Foundation in 2001. In 2007, 11 communities across the country were graded. Seven more communities have signed on for the 2008 report cards.

The reports help foundations focus on areas which may otherwise fall between the gaps, Patten said. Their readable format has also attracted attention from citizens and politicians.

“In almost every community the report cards have found their way into the hands of elected leaders,” Patten said.

Peter Walkenhorst, program director of the Germany-based Bertelsmann Foundation, said projects like Vital Signs help promote philanthropy among all economic groups.

Community foundations, which are essential to promoting such reports, are gaining strength in Europe. The first German foundation was created in 1996. Since then more than 160 have popped up.

Walkenhorst noted foundations around the world are becoming tightly connected.

“The whole notion of community is changing,” Walkenhorst said, pointing at the Internet and other technological advances. “Donors are looking beyond their communities.”

Victoria Foundation’s second annual report, released in October, has helped local non-profit organizations with grant applications. Surrounded by Cedar, an organization which works in partnership with communities and other agencies to support the child welfare services, received a funding cheque for $40,000 this week and many United Way organizations site the report in grant request, said Sandra Richardson, Victoria Foundation CEO, said.

“(The report) has made a huge change to the way we apply for grants,” Richardson said.

raldous@vicnews.com

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