It's already been a blazing hot summer in Hay River, and for many local children, the community's Tree House Drop-In Centre is the best place to find relief.
The facility routinely sets up sprinklers for its young charges to play in, and also facilitates beach days when the weather cooperates.
Yet if the centre's federal funding is not renewed next year, local children will have to find other ways to beat the heat in the summer SA国际影视传媒� and their parents will need to figure out new solutions for childcare year-round.
"We are a federally-funded program, under Health Canada's Community Action Program For Children," said program coordinator Genevieve Clarke, who has worked with the centre for close to 20 years. "The federal government is changing the funding, so we have to reapply and we won't know until the application processes whether or not we'll be operating next year."
The Tree House Drop-In Centre operates year-round, and has been doing so for 22 years. It provides free programming for children up to six years old, as well as for their parents and caregivers. In the winter, when programming occurs indoors, it can accommodate just over 20 tykes per day, but it can accommodate many more than that in the summer, when time can more easily be spent outdoors.
Much of the programming offered helps children develop their motor, cognitive and social skills through activities like crafts and outdoor play.
"[The children] love it," said Clarke. "I hear from the parents that their kids wanted to come over at 8:00 [in the morning], right when they woke up."
She added that parents are also grateful for the free programming the centre offers.
"We get very good feedback," she said. "I've heard numerous times when we've had to close for the fires or the floods, 'Oh, I couldn't wait till you guys were open, it's been so difficult waiting.' Our clients are very happy with the services we provide."
The facility also offers some programming for new parents, including its Northern Moms program, which teaches new mothers about the challenges and risks of the post-partum period.
With so much free programming on offer, the Tree House Drop-In Centre is very valuable to many people in Hay River, young and old, and its closure would be a real loss.
Thankfully, Clarke is increasingly optimistic the centre's funding will be approved for another year.
"I'm more hopeful than when the [application] process started," she said. "[The centre] is important for the children's development. It's important for the parents. Yes, there's other programs in the community, but we have a lot of children in the community, and you can't just have one program running or else you're going to have a five-year waiting list."
Clarke did not disclose how much funding the centre typically receives from the federal government each year.
