A local agency providing youth employment services is celebrating its golden anniversary.
Second Chance Employment Counseling (Wellington) celebrated its 50th birthday Friday with an open house at its office on Norfolk Street in Guelph. The staff decorated the office like a time capsule highlighting what had happened over the years to mark the agency’s past milestones.
When the agency first opened in 1974, it initially provided services only for people with addictions and disabilities. It was not until 1982, after receiving provincial funding, that 2nd Chance began providing employment and counseling services for youth.
2nd Chance has since opened an office in Fergus and the Stone Road Mall in Guelph.
Chris Baginski-Hansen has been the executive director of 2nd Chance for more than 35 years and finds it remarkable that it has existed for so long.
“Some years, I would have said ‘no,’ and other years you felt more confident,” he said, referring to the agency’s longevity. “It all depends on the government at that time, it all depends on the economic times. But we are here. “It feels like it went by so quickly.”
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Technology has changed in the last 50 years. In 1974, people used typewriters to put together their resumes and communicated via rotary-dial telephone. Now, almost everyone has access to a computer or wireless Internet.
“When I first started, there were two computers in the office,” Baginski-Hansen said. “When the Internet became available for public use, everything changed. Suddenly, we had information at our fingertips and we were trying to figure out a completely different way to do our work.
Guelph MP Lloyd Longfield, Guelph MPP and Green Party leader Mike Schreiner, and city councilor Carly Klassen were on hand for the anniversary celebration. Longfield used the occasion to announce that 2nd Chance was receiving $1.74 million for the agency’s Ways2Work program, which helps youth who face barriers to employment.
“This will help 140 youth in our community find employment,” Longfield said. “And from there, those 140 young people will help 140 other young people.”
It is part of $370 million over four years from Employment and Social Development Canada’s Youth Employment and Skills Strategy Program, which was announced earlier this year by federal Minister of Women and Gender Equality and Youth Marcy Ien to support more than 200 community-led projects. Was for. Canada.
“The Way2Work program has helped over 1,500 youth over the past few years and the results have been incredible,” said Baginski-Hansen.
Baginski-Hansen hopes Second Chances will continue to help more young people find work over the next 50 years.
“We would love to see more resources put into the staff so we can do more in-depth work,” he said. “We don’t want to see young people getting jobs for a few months, we want to see long-term success.”
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