Photo courtesy Saskatchewan Youth in Care and Custody Network website.
The province’s Minister of Social Services is backing “Child and Youth in Care Week,” which is devoted to pointing out that not every story of a young person in care is a negative one.
Stephanie Bustamante with the Saskatchewan Youth in Care and Custody Network (SYICCN) says the young people she works with – either in foster care or in youth custody – don’t want to be stigmatized as “bad eggs” because of circumstances beyond their control. This, she says, is why at a 2012 conference those youths chose to dedicate one week each year to bring their experiences to light, on their own terms, with the past several years including official recognition from the province.
“Having strengths and being from care, and the power of youth voice, is something that isn’t often highlighted,” Bustamante says.
Whatever the reasons may be, she said, there will always be cases where young people cannot stay with their families “and we want to focus on how to make those peoples’ lives who are in care, better and how young people can help make that better and be part of the positive, proactive movement.”
Her advice to people across the province, is to get informed on what life is like for young people in care and to try to put themselves in their shoes
In a news release on Monday, Social Services Minister Tina Beaudry-Mellor applauded the SYICCN, which is a Social Services-funded non-profit, for its work with young people between the ages of 14 and 24, who Bustamante says are the most likely to fall through the cracks.
“Child and Youth in Care Week is a wonderful opportunity for everyone in Saskatchewan to let children and youth who have been in care know that their experiences and knowledge is valuable,” Tina Beaudry-Mellor said in the news release.
Bustamante points out that young people have rights, like being able to request a transfer from their foster home, and need supports from people who understand their experience of bouncing from house to house or school to school.
“Often you’re removed from your community, your family, your friends, and it can be very isolating. So the network is here to be able to provide that external family. We call ourselves, it sounds cheesy, but we call ourselves a forever family. We’re always going to be here,” she says.
Specifically, she says most people involved in SYICCN are “alumni” from government care, and are now well-equipped to help younger people coming up in the system.
However, she says each SYICCN local network requires a social worker to volunteer in order to function. With the current provincial limitations, the usual seven networks are currently down to four. Currently they serve about 150 young people.