Do not go to The Salvation Army's Multicultural Family Centre in St. Vital if you are looking for an oasis of calm in Winnipeg.

In the basement, babies and young children are hollering and running around as their mothers laugh and chat about the day's events. Further down the hall, a dozen young men and women are participating in a team-building exercise, all of them trying to be heard amid the tumult of voices. And in another room, an English as a second language class is being conducted in loud but very passable English. In addition, an Alcoholic Anonymous meeting is being held in the basement and the hall is being readied for a movie viewing later that evening.

“There's always something going on,” says Commissioner John Nelson, then director of St. Vital. “Our philosophy is to live the life rather than just talk the life.”

Where There's a Need
St. Vital began as a small corps about a quarter of a century ago, but the changing dynamics of the community threatened to pass it by. “Instead of closing, St. Vital was reinvented as a kind of social outreach,” says Commissioner Nelson, “and the Multicultural Family Centre was born.”

The population of the St. Vital area consists mainly of low-income families and newcomers to Canada, and the centre has programs tailored to meet their needs.

“St. Vital is far from downtown where most social services are concentrated,” explains Jurkuc Yaak, the centre's business administrator. “If we weren't here, they would have nowhere to go. It brings the services to them instead of having them search for assistance.”

A LEEP Forward
One of those services is the Life and Employability Enhancement Program. Known as LEEP, it is an employment-training program for youth who have come from war-affected countries. The five-month-long weekly classroom sessions teach employability skills, “from how to fill out a resume to how to dress for a job interview and everything in-between,” says LEEP supervisor Michelle Strain.

At the end of the five-month period, the students' skills and language levels are matched to a two-week internship, which can result in full-time employment.

The LEEP program boasts close to a 100-percent graduation rate, and while six-month follow-ups are the norm, many are tracked for years afterwards.

Off the Street and Out of Trouble
Families Are Us is a parenting-support program for parents who have children five years of age and younger. “We conduct various activities focused on topics such as nutrition, literacy, kindergarten preparation and dental care,” says Florence Quan, community ministries co-ordinator.

Family Foundations is aimed at parents who are expecting or have a child under the age of one. “The focus here is on pre- and postnatal care,” continues Quan. A public-health nurse is on site, as well as a dietician and an outreach worker, so that parents can ask questions and immediately get answers. Women come from all over the city to participate in this popular program.

Charlene Howlette was a mother of two daughters and a week overdue with her third child. “I've been very emotional this past week. But I knew if I came here and talked to my friends and the staff, I'd feel better. And I do!”

St. Vital also offers a kids' club from September to June for those aged seven to 12. A structured program with games and crafts, “we also touch on topics that might be part of their everyday lives, such as bullying,” Quan says. “There is a strong faith element to these lessons. We tackle topics such as fighting, swearing and civility.”

During the summer, kids' camp operates three times a week, with activities and structured themes as well as trips to places like the museum and the zoo.

“St. Vital represents a lot of symbolic value to The Salvation Army,” concludes Yaak. “We're the new face of the Army in the community.”

Top photo: Offering support to parents and children; bottom: LEEP students participate in a team-building exercise. Photo credit: Carson Samson.