The Globe and Mail reported on November 19th, that The Council of Canadians with Disabilities, a national advocacy group, is pushing for the government to repeal immigration criteria that it calls discriminatory toward people with disabilities.
The Council of Canadians with Disabilities is calling for the repeal of a provision that bars immigrants with disabilities from settling in Canada on grounds that they could place too much demand on the country\’s medical system. The group contends the practice is discriminatory and based on outdated, stereotypical ideas around disability.
The council wants the government to drop the requirement from the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act and to make sure disabled people are included in crafting a new, more inclusive procedure. The council will be among several groups speaking this week before the House of Commons Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration.
Council First Vice-Chair John Rae says disability rights advocates don\’t often get a seat at the table at the inception of a new policy, and the result often is that changes must be made later to address their uniquely complex needs. According to Rae, the requirement \”is very demeaning because it assumes that persons with disabilities are inherently a burden on society.\” He said Canada\’s current laws also run counter to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Disabilities, which the government has signed on to.
This action will also help the Council fight for more involvement in the design, development and implementation of legislation and programs. Where in the past decisions are made and then need to be retracted – the Council wants their involvement to be at the beginning when there\’s still time to positively impact upon what is being developed.
To read the full article and follow this story, please visit the original Globe and Mail article.
Posted: November 20, 2017 by cvsadmin
Help Out with our 2017 Christmas Hampers
It\’s that time of year again! Community Ventures Society is beginning to pull items together for its Christmas hampers.
This year we have 3 families that we will be helping out for the holiday season. Your donations of gifts, cash or gift cards is greatly appreciated.
Deadline is December 8th so please see Joanne Weidinger, Afroza Samji or Gillian Reyes in Children\’s Services to make your donation.
Posted: November 20, 2017 by cvsadmin
Disability Rights Advocates Fights Immigration Requirements
The Globe and Mail reported on November 19th, that The Council of Canadians with Disabilities, a national advocacy group, is pushing for the government to repeal immigration criteria that it calls discriminatory toward people with disabilities.
The Council of Canadians with Disabilities is calling for the repeal of a provision that bars immigrants with disabilities from settling in Canada on grounds that they could place too much demand on the country\’s medical system. The group contends the practice is discriminatory and based on outdated, stereotypical ideas around disability.
The council wants the government to drop the requirement from the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act and to make sure disabled people are included in crafting a new, more inclusive procedure. The council will be among several groups speaking this week before the House of Commons Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration.
Council First Vice-Chair John Rae says disability rights advocates don\’t often get a seat at the table at the inception of a new policy, and the result often is that changes must be made later to address their uniquely complex needs. According to Rae, the requirement \”is very demeaning because it assumes that persons with disabilities are inherently a burden on society.\” He said Canada\’s current laws also run counter to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Disabilities, which the government has signed on to.
This action will also help the Council fight for more involvement in the design, development and implementation of legislation and programs. Where in the past decisions are made and then need to be retracted – the Council wants their involvement to be at the beginning when there\’s still time to positively impact upon what is being developed.
To read the full article and follow this story, please visit the original Globe and Mail article.
Posted: November 16, 2017 by cvsadmin
Welcome to Miriam CVS\’s New Communications Manager
Please join me in welcoming Miriam Hoolahan, MSc. to CVS as the Manager of Communications. Miriam has an excellent background/education in communications and marketing and she will lead us in external and internal communications (including social media), member relations, fundraising, marketing of our enterprises and oversight of our web-based information systems. Miriam started November 14th and I know that she will be an asset to CVS.
Posted: November 16, 2017 by cvsadmin
familyWORKs Meeting
familyWORKs is having a meeting on Thursday, November 30th on the topic of Skill Building and the Guest speaker is Wendy Parry from Douglas College. Please see the poster below for further information.
Posted: November 2, 2017 by cvsadmin
Winter is here it seems…
We are writing to you to advise that when snows fall this year CVS intends to stay operational so that people who regularly come to the Port Moody office or the Port Coquitlam office will have staff to support them. However, activities and outings may be changed to make sure that safety of the people we serve and staff is the priority therefore most services will be provided in the building. Please be aware that Handydart may cancel services if snow falls early in the morning.
For the individuals that are usually picked up from home, staff will attempt to pick up that person, however due to road conditions and hills that may or may not be possible. CVS will phone to advise if we are unable to pick up the person but please know that the office will be open and the person can be dropped off anytime after 9am and then would need to be picked up by 3pm.
We are aware this may cause some inconvenience however our efforts are to keep everyone safe at CVS. We hope to have a very mild winter so that snow will not cause too much disruption. We have already made plans to have our parking lot and sidewalks cleared, we have salt stocked up, and we hope to be able to respond to weather events appropriately. If the snow is extreme please keep in mind that we may have to close for the sake of safety but we will try to avoid closing if at all possible. To check if we are open please call 604.218.8492.
Posted: October 11, 2017 by cvsadmin
Planned Giving Learning Event – Port Moody Foundation
Dear Community Ventures Society Family Members,
The Port Moody Foundation has invited the Community Ventures Society to participate in a planned giving evening event on Wednesday, November 8, 2017 at the Old Orchard Hall in Port Moody, from 7 – 9pm. CVS is one of three organizations selected to participate in this event.
The Port Moody Foundation has asked us to invite our members to participate in this event as a way to learn about the concept of planned giving. We ask you to consider the following statement of life circumstance that may apply to some of our members: “We are a married couple in our early 60’s. We hope to retire in four years. Community Ventures Society has supported our adult child for over 15 years and we want to provide some financial support to the organization as a way of leaving a legacy. We want to do it in a way that best protects our estate for our children and grandkids, and at the same time contribute to our community.”
At the event there will be experts on taxation planning and law who will respond to the case statements and make recommendations on more tax efficient way to organize finances to optimize estates, reduce taxes and achieve stated goals. No one will be asked to do anything on the evening: the only objective is to help attendees to better plan financial affairs in light of legal and taxation realities.
Robert Simons, President of the Port Moody Foundation says, “ We know that this kind of event is always popular and we find that people enjoy developing their understanding of law and taxation in the supportive environment of the community. Peoples’ financial matters are always personal and they are better able to organize them when there is an understanding of prevailing opportunities and constraints.
If you have any questions about the event please contact Kevin Lusignan at 604.939.8070 ext. 2020 or Robert Simon, President of the Port Moody Foundation at 604.461.6660. We hope to see you there.
Sincerely yours,
Kevin Lusignan
Executive Director
Posted: October 3, 2017 by cvsadmin
CVS is Hiring
CVS is hiring for our Community Inclusion Programs, Residential Services, Foster Care, Respite and Shared Living Services. For more information please check out our website or call Pete Stone, Manager of Human Resources and Quality Assurance at 604.939.8070 ext. 2027 or send him an email at [email protected]
Posted: October 3, 2017 by cvsadmin
2017 CVS Halloween Party
It\’s our 2017 Halloween Party!
Come and join us for our Annual Halloween Bash
Oct 31st 10am-2pm
Location: CVS Port Moody Office
Games!, Goodies!, and Costumes!
Prizes! Cookies! Pizza! $5
Posted: October 3, 2017 by cvsadmin
FSI – Webinar on High School Transition
The Family Support Institute presents a free webinar on Leaving High School – What\’s Next? The web event is on Tuesday, October 24th from 6:30 – 8:30 pm. see the information below for details and who to contact with questions.
Posted: October 3, 2017 by cvsadmin
October is Community Inclusion Month
October is Community Inclusion Month. Every year at this time, the Community Ventures Society (CVS) and Community Integration Services Society (CISS) celebrate the contributions that people with developmental disabilities make in the Tri-Cities communities. We think that inclusion should happen in childcare, in education, in the community, volunteering and in workplaces. Working is one of the best ways in achieving inclusion so that people are included in our economic system as workers, consumers and taxpayers. As important, workplaces are social systems where it is very likely that people will make friends and develop relationships and that provides social inclusion. Below are positive examples of inclusive employers in the Tri-Cities.
Our first example is the Tri-Cities Branches of Vancity who are intentional about giving people with developmental disabilities the opportunity to contribute and show that they can be valuable employees and contribute to public service.
Vancity was recognized by the Employment Roundtable of the Tri-Cities who awarded the Inclusive Employer Award to Vancity at the Mayor’s BBQ on September 7. Vancity’s work on diversity and inclusion is organization wide and is rooted in its organizational values. We very much appreciate the efforts of Vancity Savings Credit Union and they very much deserve this award.
Another shining example of an inclusive employer is at Gabi & Jules Bakery, where they employ several people with developmental disabilities. Owners Lisa & Peter Beecroft were awarded the Peter Hulbert Award at the City of Port Moody Volunteer Appreciation Night.
In December, the Employment Roundtable of the Tri-Cities presented an Inclusive Employer Award at the annual Christmas Rotary Luncheon (all 4 Rotary Clubs in the Tri-Cities) to Paul Droulis who owns the Canadian Tire in Coquitlam. Paul hired 2 people with developmental disabilities to work at Canadian Tire.
Community Ventures Society and Community Integration Services Society asks you to reflect on these exemplars of inclusion in the Tri-Cities and we invite you to join us in celebrating Community Inclusion Month. Over the next year, we ask that you think about how you can help people with disabilities be more included in our schools, places of play, in the arts, in workplaces and at the ballot box.
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