Niagara Region Archives

An Interview with Adrienne Jugley

by Rob Kirsic | December 2024

Adrienne recently served as the Commissioner of Community Services where she was committed to serving the most vulnerable people in the Niagara community from infant to senior. In this role, Adrienne envisioned Niagara Region as a strong community where individuals are supported to maximize their potential, achieve their goals, and enhance their quality of life and social well-being.

She is also one of the recipients of the 2024 OMSSA Champion of Human Services Award. OMSSA sat down with Adrienne Jugley for an interview to discuss her work and career and thoughts on human services in Ontario.

An Interview with Cathy Cousins

by Angelica Nuguid | July 2024

Cathy Cousins worked for the Region of Niagara in Corporate Services for 10 years, until 2005, when she began to hold a variety of roles in Community Services including Director of Support Services, Acting Commissioner, and Director of Homelessness Services and Community Engagement within the Region. She has experience with labour negotiations and job evaluation, and involvement in a variety of committees with the Office of the Fire Marshal and Emergency Management (OFMEM) for emergency management and emergency social services. She is skilled in budget preparation and management, financial reporting and committee presentations. Cathy has previous experience on the OMSSA Board as President and currently serves as Past-President. This interview explores her priorities in human services delivery for Niagara Region, her involvement with OMSSA, and her overall experience and contributions to the human services sector.

Developing an Indigenous-led RECE Training Program in Niagara

by Niagara Region | May 2024

OMSSA is featuring several 2023 Local Municipal Champion award recipients and their work in the Knowledge Exchange Blog. Please read this entry from Niagara Region.

The Niagara Region Children’s Services Division, the Fort Erie Native Friendship Centre (FENFC), Niagara College (NC) and Six Nations Polytechnic (SNP) formed a partnership, planned and delivered the Indigenous-led Registered Early Childhood Educator (RECE) Program pilot project.

Urban Indigenous Homeward Bound: Connecting for the Dream

by The Ontario Federation of Indigenous Friendship Centres (OFIFC) | May 2024

Seven years ago, Ashley Pitawanakwat moved 700 kilometers across the province from Wikwemikong First Nation to Niagara Region with her three children to escape an abusive partner.

Pitawanakwat describes herself as lost in her trauma at the time. She hadn’t lived in her hometown of Fort Erie for 20 years and was nervous about reconnecting with the local urban Indigenous community. Gradually, though, she began to attend women’s drumming circles at the Fort Erie Native Friendship Centre (FENFC).

At one of these events, a Friendship Centre board member asked if she would consider participating in a new pilot program, Urban Indigenous Homeward Bound (UIHB). “I didn’t know what UIHB was, what the goals were, or even what being a pilot participant meant, but I said yes and jumped right into it,” she recalls.

To learn more about the Urban Indigenous Homeward Bound Program, please attend the session Urban Indigenous Homeward Bound: Connecting for the Dream at the 2024 OMSSA Exchange Conference on May 8th at 10:30 a.m.