Help us to celebrate the giving season this year by donating to Inclusion BC. With your help, we will be there to support children, youth, and adults with intellectual disabilities and their families advocate for their right to be included in all areas of community life.
“Inclusion BC cared about our son when no one else did. He is four years old with a dual diagnosis of Down Syndrome and Autism. He is fed through a gastrostomy tube and not walking. We thought preschool would be a good opportunity for him to socialize with his peers, lessen his anxiety in new environments, get ready for Kindergarten, and just have fun!
After we applied for funding for support staff, we were excited to find a preschool that would be a great fit and we pre-registered.
Much to our dismay, we then found out that most likely our funding request would not be approved due to a lack of funding and long waitlists. I was devastated. I reached out to our local MLA with phone calls and emails. Her office said they would look into it and I heard absolutely nothing back.
It was then that I reached out to Inclusion BC and one of their advocates responded right away to my email. She listened, empathized, and within days helped us write a fantastic email to our MLA. She followed up and stayed in touch. By the end of the summer, I heard back that the funding had come through and our son would be able to attend preschool. We were ecstatic and so grateful to Inclusion BC for caring, showing empathy, kindness, and most of all for their support for all children regardless of their disability.” – Family Member
Everyday Inclusion BC advocates hear stories like this one. Parents and family members reach out to the Inclusion BC Helpline looking for assistance to navigate complex systems and support to advocate on behalf of their loved ones. Families are desperately looking for information and waiting for access to the services that they are entitled to. Kids end up aging out of programs and services before they even get a chance to participate.
This is how our Kids Can’t Wait campaign began. Kids Can’t Wait works to amplify the voices of families whose children live with an intellectual and developmental disability and brings together our members, partners, and government ministries to improve systems for early years support.
You can help build a British Columbia where successful early years support means that families have equitable, timely, and universal access to resources that would enable all children to thrive.
As the pandemic continues, your support is needed more than ever. The past 18 months have been even more difficult for families whose children live with an intellectual or developmental disability, with services being cancelled or reduced and waitlists growing.
By signing up as a Circle of Friends monthly donor or making a donation, you will be supporting Kids Can’t Wait, the Inclusion BC Helpline which supports children, youth, and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities to access much-needed services, and our other important campaigns. Your donation will help create meaningful change both now and for generations to come.
