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About the Awards
Every year since 2002 SCY recognizes people and groups in communities across British Columbia for their efforts, and the impact of their initiatives in community building, through our Child and Youth Friendly Communities Award.
Past recipients, in both urban and rural centers, won with initiatives such as improving childcare services in their communities, community mapping to assess child and youth friendlines in local parks and running after-school programs providing youth mentoring and community clean-ups - developed by youth for youth.
Any group can be nominated as long as their initiatives engage direct involvement from children and/or youth. "Good leaders aren't born, they're made, and the youth council helps us to excel in leadership as well as build our skills to help in the community." - Abbotsford youth and award recipient.
2005 AWARD RECIPIENTS:
 Osoyoos Skateboard Park Society for creating opportunities for youth to gain experience as active contributors and leaders in their community; for achieving cooperation among government, business, and citizens of all ages to create a park that improves and benefits the entire community; and for demonstrating forcefully that youthful citizens are community assets, not problems.
Lougheed Town Centre Management, Burnaby for encouraging young people to take leadership roles in their community and fostering a relationship of mutual respect between adults and children and youth; forrespecting and supporting parents in their role as primary caregivers for children and youth; and for demonstrating ingenuity and commitment, as a corporation, towards creating and supporting communities that are safe, healthy and friendly for children and youth.
Parent-Child Mother Goose Program (B.C.) for recognizing the diversity of children and addressing their unique needs in terms of ability, cultural background, economic status and more; for promoting the overall health and wellness of children, and for providing opportunities for the development of essential skills in
them; and for respecting and supporting parents in their role as primary caregivers for all children and for ensuring that services are available to support children and families around B.C.
2005 HONORABLE MENTIONS:
The Community Connections Society of Revelstoke - A Society the strives to strengthen and enrich the lives of individuals and families in the community of Revelstoke by providing many accessible and responsive services.
The Broadway Youth Resource Centre of Vancouver - A Cooperative of 11 agencies serving youth through an integrated continuum of social and health services to youth aged 12 to 24 at risk of involvement in the sex trade, substance abuse, criminal activity and early school leaving.
2004 AWARD RECIPIENTS:
John Howard Society of North Island, Campbell River for providing programs of rehabilitation, education, prevention and healing for children and youth and opening opportunities for them to achieve, maintain or regain balance within their communities.
Abbotsford Youth Commission, for offering, in addition to their regularly scheduled activities, a series of free recreation programs for less-advantaged and marginalized youth (all developed by youth) in the community over the last year including activities surrounding Youth Week and other community events.
New Westminster Youth Advisory Committee, for developing an anti drinking and driving PSA with help from the local radio industry and the Parks and Recreation Department of the City of New Westminster.
2004 HONORABLE MENTIONS:
Sunshine Coast Strikers U16 Rep Soccer Team, for offering an excellent example of how parents, coaches and kids from all walks of life can actively participate within, and collectively make decisions for, one community sports team.
Chetwynd Alcohol & Drug Misuse Prevention Committee, for developing an initiative whereby children and youth, in exchange for attending an exciting and popular five-day physical theatre workshop, are asked to take part in, and volunteer at, at least one community event over the year.
2003 AWARD RECIPIENTS:
Renfew-Collingwood Community, Vancouver, for the myriad of efforts being made for children and youth, including the Family of Schools program that links 1,500 youth to seven elementary schools where they lead after school programs for younger children; the Youth Adaptation program pairs immigrant youth with a buddy to help ease the transition to a new country; and a number of other initiatives include environmental stewardship, safety and prevention, and nutrition programs. www.cnh.bc.ca/community.htm
Broadway Youth Resource Team, Vancouver, for it’s work targeting the at-risk youth from aboriginal and other multi-ethnic backgrounds in the heart of Vancouver’s Mount Pleasant neighborhood. The BYRT demonstrates outstanding leadership in providing much needed counseling, employment, and education programs in a ‘one of its kind’ integrated model supported by seven agencies. www.pcrs.ca/byrc/index.htm
Montrose Youth Action Team Society, which is tucked in among neighboring cities of Trail and Rossland, for the efforts of one young man who was determined to see a skateboard park built in his community, and the community members (youth and adults alike) who supported him and his efforts to make the park a reality.
2003 HONORABLE MENTIONS:
Boston Bar’s Building Bridges/New Beginnings Program, which pairs young children with big buddies, supports interaction between children and seniors, as well as crafts and family recreation and is supported by a local six-person committee.
Canadian Red Cross Respect Ed Violence and Abuse Prevention Program, which is a volunteer driven program that works in partnership with a variety of community agencies to deliver training and education on child abuse prevention. www.redcross.ca/article.asp?id=000294&tid=030
Richmond Auto Mall’s Kidsake Day, which involves 35 non-profit groups in the Richmond area to deliver safety knowledge to over 900 parents each year during Kidsake Day – BC’s largest child safety day.
Riley Park Youth Council, Vancouver, for making a positive impact on youth issues and through its principles of preventative programming, collaborative networking, cultural sensitivity, resource development and networking opportunities for young people.
2002 AWARD RECIPIENTS:
Youth Outreach Initiative Program of the Maple Ridge-Pitt Meadows Parks and Leisure Services, for giving youth a strong voice and influence over their own programs.
Grandview/Uqinak'uuk Elementary School and the Grandview Terrace Child Care, Vancouver, for the Spirit of Nature garden. This project involved children in every step of the transformation of a muddy one-acre elementary school yard in a crowded inner city neighbourhood into a school/community garden.
Child and Youth Friendly Calgary for being the Canadian pioneer in the child and youth friendly cities movement, for offering children and youth a chance to contribute as citizens to their city and for helping other cities to develop their own initiatives.
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