Past Projects
Youth Action projects are about young people finding innovative, creative and pro-active ways to address an issue, challenge or need in the community. Projects take place in various communities across the city and address a range of issues from: leadership development and mentorship programs to addressing isolation and multiculturalism, to the lack of affordable activities for children and issues around youth unemployment, to developing life skills of teens with disabilities…and the list goes on!
When a group of teens living with disabilities realized that kids with special needs didn’t have many recreational choices, they took matters into their own hands. They organized the first-ever “Great Ottawa Overnight,” a one-night sleepover for teens with physical and developmental challenges. The night’s activities included arts and crafts, wheelchair basketball, memory books and a group dinner. The event was supervised by therapists from the Ottawa Children’s Treatment Centre, and funded by a Youth Action Grant from United Way/Centraide Ottawa.
For 12-year-old Celine Walker, it was a fantastic night filled with new friends and experiences. “Even when you’re in a wheelchair,” she says, “it’s important to get to try new things.
