I remember the first time that I held Jonah in my arms. I looked down at this small and beautiful boy and thought about what a precious gift I’d been given.
Like so many others, as a new parent, I knew immediately that I would always carry this sense of incredible responsibility for him — that it was now our mission to ensure that he’d be as healthy as possible, to ensure that he would have every opportunity to reach his full potential.
We carefully watched for each milestone in his development and checked off the list as he grew through those early years. Now that he’s become a teenager — and knowing that the No. 1 health concern for young people today is mental health — I’m seeing firsthand how important it is to have a variety of peers, adults, specialists, mentors and teachers alongside us who are also looking out for him along the way.
And so this is the role that I want to play in the lives of children, youth and families on our Islands: the role of advocate, convener, fundraiser, and builder. As CEO of Children’s Health Foundation of Vancouver Island, I promise to be a steadfast voice for those kids and families who need help most. It’s my promise to work tirelessly to gather and deploy community resources in support of the health concerns that our collective children and their families are dealing with in our community.
I’ve been at the foundation for just over eight months, yet it’s my 13 years so far as a mom that have sharpened my desire to champion the health of every child, youth, and family in the communities we serve. As we embark upon our 90th year in this role on Vancouver Island, our foundation today bears some resemblance to our earliest years in the 1920s.
We still put kids at the very heart of everything we do. We’re still at the table in the earliest days of every youth-focused health-care project. And we’re still working alongside parents, doctors, practitioners and partners to anticipate what community-based services are needed for Island families next.
We’re still raising funds for tomorrow’s health-care challenges — and, together with our donors, we’re still building and transforming access to resources for families and children facing immense health challenges.
In 1927, that crisis of need on Vancouver Island was in patient support for kids with polio and other debilitating diseases. In 2017, our vital fundraising work is needed for programs and resources that support Island kids who need help with mental-health and substance-use issues.
Every Island kid deserves to reach his or her full potential. After listening to the youth in our communities, we know that wraparound care that supports the total well-being of each child — their physical, mental and spiritual health — in safe, youth-friendly spaces is the best possible way to help our children flourish.
Just like the experience of being a parent, the journey to get there — to create a new model for how we support youth mental health on Vancouver Island — won’t be easy. Just like parenting, it truly will take a village to get there.
Thirteen years into my own journey as a parent, I know this last point to be true. Early on I struggled with postpartum depression. As a working mom, I was back in the workplace early in Jonah’s life and that was difficult for me. For the relatively minor health challenges that were his to face, I’m grateful that we found solutions quickly. Through all of the ups and downs, like most parents I wouldn’t change a thing — and I’m delighted at the joy and happiness my son brings to my life and our home.
In my work with the foundation, I’m encouraging our communities to help make those ups and downs easier for the families in each of our neighbourhoods who are facing health challenges.
Together, we can stand with Island kids. Together, we can rally behind them. Together, we can show them they’re not alone in their darkest days.
Ninety years into our journey, I’m proud that Children’s Health Foundation is still leading this charge.
Veronica Carroll is the CEO of Children’s Health Foundation of Vancouver Island.
