Seeds of Hope in Bloom: St. Croix Wellness and Renewal Centre
In the rural area of St. Stephen, NB where St. Croix Wellness and Renewal Centre sits, many of the local churches have closed. Residents need other forums to support a successful, meaningful mind-body-Spirit connection. SCWRC provides a weekly opportunity for participants over 50 to engage in physical movement, intellectual, social and spiritual stimulation, healthy eating and support.
Well n’Us 50+ began as a small, but popular program in 2016. With the support of a Seeds of Hope grant it has grown into a cornerstone of the community. It now serves the needs of upwards of 200 seniors each week, program facilitator Kim Reeder reports. “It advances community capacity and brings with it widespread benefits!”
A Community of Vibrant Seniors
The program enables many opportunities for social and spiritual connections. Among them, recognizing and celebrating personal assets, positive individual/team traits, strengths, motivations and interests and practise and improvement of coping and stress management skills and confidence related to asking for help. One delighted participant offered this moving testimony. “For me, the measure of success for a wellness program is the level of engagement. I have been participating from the beginning and every week have seen the room full of enthusiastic seniors who continue to be engaged in the conversations, the presentations, and the physical activities. This group exemplifies what is possible with the appropriate funding! A community of vibrant seniors who are still contributing in so many ways because they are healthy and well.”.
An Avid Musician Returns to Play
Kim relayed another amazing experience from the program. “One man who had been an avid musician in his younger years and who had also been an avid volunteer by sharing his musical gifts at seniors’ homes, churches and youth gatherings. He had lost the ability to play his guitar (and therefore lost his motivation for volunteering) due to atrophy in his arm and hand. He credited the exercise portion of the program with the realization he COULD get better. And he did. He returned to his volunteer work, and regularly played his guitar and sang when folks were coming in, registering and having their first coffee before we’d get events started for the day.”
Plant Your Own Seeds of Hope… and Watch Them Bloom!
The United Church of Canada Foundation offers a variety of grant opportunities for United Church of Canada organizations and individuals to bring life to the ministry of the United Church. These grants are a part of the stewardship of our trusts and endowments, made possible by generous donors. The Seeds of Hope granting program awards approximately one million dollars each year to support innovative United Church projects. Our Fall granting round is now open, and we are accepting applications until October 15. How will a funding boost from Seeds of Hope help your project take flight?
We are always available if you need help completing your application, or have any further questions. Please email us at grants@united-church.ca .
