Youth, caregivers and social workers share successes, challenges and lessons learned in the care system
Orene – Intergenerational Trauma and Impacts on Families
Orene Johnston, Elder from the Squamish Nation and VACFSS Clinical Counsellor, discuss the intergenerational trauma of residential school and its impacts on Indigenous families.
Claudia – About the Care System
Child Protection Family Services Manager Claudia Liddle explains why a child may come into VACFSS care and next steps.
Connecting with a Child's Family
Cheyenne – Supporting a Child or Youth to Connect with their Family
Cheyenne, a former youth care from the Nuxalk Nation, shares how her caregivers supported her to reconnect with her family in a supportive way.
Gwendell – A Caregiver’s perspective to connecting with a child’s family
Gwendell shares the importance of connecting to a child’s biological family.
Claudia – Connecting to a child’s First Nation and family
Claudia explains VACFSS’ protocols and how caregivers work in partnership with a child’s social worker when connecting to First Nations communities and a child’s family.
Cheyenne – Supporting Children and Youth through Family Visits
Cheyenne shares practical ways to support children and youth with family visits.
Sue – How to walk alongside families with support
Caregiver Sue shares how she has built long term relationships with families.
Mike – Making connections with biological families as a newer caregiver
Mike, a caregiver of 3 years, explains how he approaches family gatherings and visits in an inclusive way.
Malcolm – Connecting with family members in diverse circumstances
Malcolm, a caregiver of 8 years, explains how he has met families of youth and children where they are at and why the extra effort is worth it.
Connecting to a Child's Culture
Gwendell – Connecting to Culture as a Caregiver
Gwendell shares her experience of connecting children to Indigenous culture in an urban context
Cheyenne – Connecting Children and Youth to their Culture
Cheyenne shares how her foster caregivers helped her feel more comfortable learning about and practicing her culture.
Claudia – Connecting to a Child’s Community and Culture
Claudia explores the challenges and opportunities of connecting to a child’s community and culture.
Mike – Bringing Culture into Everyday Life
Mike discusses how he has successfully connected children to their culture.
Malcom – How Non-Indigenous Caregivers Can Connect Youth to Culture
Malcom shares his experience connecting youth to their culture as a non-Indigenous caregiver.
Sally – Practical ways to connect youth to culture
Sally White, a caregiver of 5 years, explains different approaches to tangibly connect youth to Indigenous culture in the lower mainland.
Caregiver Stories
Travis’ Caregiving Story
Travis shares his experience of connecting Indigenous youth to a culture different than his own.
Sue’s Caregiving Story
Sue, a caregiver for 38 years, shares her approach to building trust with families of the children she cares for.
Gwendell’s Caregiving Story – Caregiving for Indigenous Youth
Gwendell, a Cree woman and a caregiver with VACFSS of 8 years, became involved in caregiving after the child’s family approached her for support.
