Blog

It Is So Emotional To See These Girls Shine

March 28, 2011

The Pass It On Project – Phase II is occurring simultaneously in 5 communities throughout British Columbia – Salt Spring Island, Uclulet, Valemount/McBride, Prince George and Kamloops.

Kamloops is in the Southern Interior of the province with a population of 85,000. The major industries are agriculture, forestry/wood products and mining. There is a major university in the community. As with any city that size, there is a mix of income levels in the population. SWOVA’s violence prevention program for youth – Respectful + Relationships program has been delivered consistently in Kamloops over the past 4 years. It has been primarily delivered in one of the lowest demographic communities of the city. The Pass It On Project is also being implemented within the same demographic base. It is a community that is dealing with severe poverty, hygiene issues, little or no communication skills and bullying issues.

Tracy Bergman is the Mentor Supervisor and Coordinator for the project and recently shared the following:

“So far I adore my Mentors. It hasn’t been perfect, but they were amazing at the mixer (the matching event between potential buddies and mentors). I was very emotional after (at home!) to see these girls shine. Several of them have had 4 years of Respectful + Relationships, and it shows.”

Tracy also shared that one of the younger buddies was going to back out when she heard her ‘bully’ was also coming to the mixer.  After Tracy spent time speaking with the young buddy’s mother as well as the young buddy herself, “she agreed to stay on and is actually excited to learn some communication skills and build a rapport with her Mentor – face her ‘bully’.”

Finally, Tracy agrees that it is a whole comprehensive wraparound approach that makes a project of this nature work.

“My contact at the middle school is really keen and that has made a huge difference. She is incredibly invested, especially considering her workload.”

Regardless of the community and regardless of the issues, a project like Pass It On can work. All it takes are inspired youth, invested partners and a champion like Tracy Bergman. Thanks to her commitment to and passion for the health, safety and leadership potential of young women, young females and girls in Kamloops are finding their voice and growing together. Thanks Tracy.

Chris Gay – Pass It On Phase II Coordinator

Learn How to Work Better with Youth

Learn How to Work Better with Youth

The Circle Salt Spring Education Society is offering a new ‘Methods and Tools for Deeper Connections with youth’ course at the end of January 2022. This offering is ideal for individuals who work with youth in a variety of contexts, whether it be formal educational...

From L.A. to a Rural Island: Social-Emotional Learning insights

From L.A. to a Rural Island: Social-Emotional Learning insights

When Adele Mark was fifteen, she moved with her parents from Los Angeles, a city of 13 million people where she had lived all of her life, to Salt Spring Island, Canada. A place she thought of at the time as a remote island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean with more...

“I Can Be my True Self Here”

“I Can Be my True Self Here”

Do you want to know what our Pass it On Boys program is all about? Participants of last year’s program tell in this video about what Pass it On Boys did for them. “I am able to express myself here, where I can’t always at school or at home,” says Liam Walsh. “I can be...

Name(Required)
Email(Required)
Please let us know what's on your mind. Have a question for us? Ask away.
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.