This past year we opened a new group home! Thanks to generous donors and community partners the home underwent a large renovation before opening the doors in February, 2020.

One of our Group Care team members recently interviewed a youth who has been living in Bear Lodge since day one and you can read below to get some insight into the conversation about their experience in the home so far.

How has your experience been different at Bear Lodge Group Home compared to past group care experiences?

“Bear Lodge is a more relaxed environment with easy going staff. It is easier to connect with staff because of this. I feel like I’m treated differently by them than in my previous group homes. I don’t feel like we are constantly being questioned by staff, before I always had to have my back up and would argue with them all the time.”

What is your favourite memory so far at Bear Lodge Group Home?

“When staff took me scootering for the first time in my life, it was the best.

Also, my first weekend in the house we went to the movie, Invisible Man. It was the last movie I got to see before the theatres shut down due to COVID-19 and it was really good.”

If you could give one piece of advice to a youth who is entering group care, what would it be?

“Try and get to know staff before you are mean to them. Pretty much all of us youth who come into care are already mad and angry at everyone and everything so they don’t care about the staff and how they treat them. I would say to just be nice and give them a chance and actually talk to them.

I think me talking to staff has helped me in the house and is maybe why I feel I am treated differently than in the other houses. Staff actually care about you.”

What is your greatest accomplishment in the past year?

“Finally ending probation and not messing it up before it ended. Also not doing anything to put myself back on probation, I will never do anything to risk that again!”