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25th Anniversary

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Youville Centre’s 25th Anniversary: A Gallery

We are so grateful to everyone who attended Youville Centre’s 25th Anniversary Celebration on Thursday, October 25 at the Hampton Inn Conference Centre, and to all of our event and silent auction sponsors who helped to make this event such a success! We will be sharing a full recap of the evening’s festivities in our upcoming newsletter, so if you are not subscribed to our list, please email us at communications[at]youvillecentre[dot]org to sign up.

The event was a wonderful opportunity to bring together Youville supporters past and present, look back on how far we’ve come in the past 25 years, and raise funds to support the next 25. We were so pleased to present awards to our 3 former Executive Directors, as well as a group of key volunteers, donors and advocates for our young mothers and their children. The event also featured three engaging speakers, a retrospective slideshow and a wonderful silent auction.

We were overwhelmed by a few surprise announcements from our Keynote Speaker, Shannon Gorman of TELUS and her friends and colleagues, one of which was a substantial donation to a proposed Mentorship Program. We look forward to sharing more information about this program and many other future endeavours at Youville Centre.

Please enjoy a small gallery of photos from the event below. We look forward to sharing more news from the event in our Fall/Winter Newsletter which should reach your mailbox or your inbox in the coming weeks.

*All photos by Moments of Greatness ~ Photography by Gregory Kolz

(L to R): Former Executive Director Judith Sarginson, Founder & Former Executive Director Sister Betty Ann Kinsella, Former Executive Director Sister Maco Cassetta

Youville Centre Volunteer Angel Award Recipients with Cindy Simpson, Executive Director (far left) and Tara Newman, Youville Centre Board Chair & President (fourth from right)

Longtime supporter of Youville Centre Gerry Clarke peruses Youville Centre’s most recent program report.

Heather Flinn added wonderful ambience to the evening by playing the harp beautifully to welcome our guests.

Jennifer-Anne Gibson was our Alumnae Speaker for the evening.

Sister Betty Ann Kinsella with Kim (right) and Abbey (left). Kim is a Youville Centre graduate and Abbey is her daughter.

Nathalie and Nick Lynda, Youville Centre Alumnae. Nick was our Second Generation speaker for the evening.

Generous donors made it possible for some of our alumnae to attend the event, and they enjoyed themselves thoroughly!

Creative centrepieces for the event were artfully designed and assembled by our Child Development Staff.

Caroline Pidgeon, Youville Centre Volunteer for 18 years, was honoured with the United Way Community Builder Award. We were very pleased to have Michael O’Byrne present this award to Caroline on behalf of United Way Ottawa.

Sister Betty Ann Kinsella with longtime Board Member Mike Lundy, Youville Centre Angel Award recipient Steve Georgopoulos and friends.

The incomparable Leanne Cusack was our fabulous Emcee for the evening.

What an unbelievable surprise to receive this generous donation from our Keynote Speaker, Shannon Gorman of TELUS and members of the TELUS Community Board. Pictured above are (L to R): Dennis Jackson, Cindy Simpson (Executive Director, Youville Centre), Barbara Crook, Jim Orban and Shannon Gorman.

Alumnae & Former Staff Return to Youville to Celebrate 25 Years

 

On Tuesday, October 23rd, Youville Centre Former Staff and Alumnae dating back to Youville’s beginnings 25 years ago visited our centre to reconnect and celebrate. The centre was full of smiles, laughter and even a few tears as everyone in attendance enjoyed reminiscing and reuniting. It was very special to have former Executive Directors, Sister Maco Cassetta and Judith Sarginson in attendance, with Sister Maco having traveled many miles to be there. Photo collages lined the walls, alumnae success stories were displayed, and a “museum” of Youville Centre artifacts was artfully arranged in the boardroom.

Staff and alumnae enjoyed writing messages on our Youville Centre “Yearbook Banner” to commemorate the evening. It was a lively reception and everyone enjoyed a slideshow set to music. Some alumnae even spotted themselves, their former classmates and their children in the photos displayed. Tours of  the childcare rooms and classrooms were given to allow alumnae and their children to re-live their time spent at Youville Centre. 

This event was an interesting opportunity for alumnae and former staff to see how Youville Centre has evolved over the past 25 years. It was a joy to see some of Youville Centre’s former “babies” who are now school-aged children, and it was wonderful to acknowledge Youville Centre alumnae and the accomplishments they have made since they graduated.

Many thanks to all of the staff and volunteers who lent their time and energy to the planning and execution of this event. Special thanks to the five alumnae who shared their personal stories that were posted on the walls for all to see. Please stay tuned to our blog as we will be sharing those five stories in the weeks to come!

Join us on Thursday, October 25th to Celebrate!

Please join us at the Hampton Inn Conference Centre on Thursday, October 25th as we celebrate 25 years of motivating, educating and nurturing young mothers and their children!

Our 25th Anniversary Celebration will feature a plated four-course dinner, special presentations and some wonderful guest speakers, including our Keynote Speaker, Shannon Gorman, National Director of Community Affairs at TELUS.

Click on the photo below to purchase your tickets!