News

Grandview Children’s Centre’s new headquarters will be named after a man who is well known for his kindness, compassion, hard work, integrity and his many years of giving generously to his community.

Local developer, Jerry Coughlan took the stage Saturday night at the Pickering Mayor’s Gala to announce a donation of $5 million to Grandview’s Believe campaign toward the new state-of-the-art children’s treatment centre.

“Jerry has spent his entire life building communities, now his belief in Grandview and his generous gift will help to build an unparalleled future for generations of Grandview Kids,” said Grandview Children’s Centre CEO Lorraine Sunstrum-Mann.

The Provincial government announced approval of the project in May 2017, including $31 million in funding for construction.

The new Grandview is expected to cost $53 million. Grandview Children’s Foundation is embarking on the BELIEVE campaign to raise the funds needed to build the new headquarters and to support the specialized programs and services offered by Grandview.

“Simply saying thank you is not enough to show just how grateful we are for Jerry’s lead gift. We will honour him forever by naming the new headquarters after him,” explained Grandview Children’s Foundation Executive Director of Development Brigitte Tschinkel. “The journey to a new Grandview has officially begun. We are happy to have Jerry and his wife Lyn taking the next steps with us.”

 “Touring Grandview Kids reinforced my belief in this wonderful organization. Opportunities, specialized services and support are provided to children and youth by expert staff that truly care about helping kids achieve their dreams,” said Jerry.

The Jerry Coughlan Building of Grandview Children’s Centre will be constructed on a parcel of land in the Town of Ajax on Harwood Avenue North.

The next steps in the project include Grandview working with the Province to complete geotechnical and environmental due diligence on the site followed by the finalization of the architectural design, and construction.

On November 1, 2017, a few members of the Grandview Kids staff brought their children into the centre for the annual “Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day 2017”.

Staff members Cherie Kerr, Shelley Frizzell and Susan Kehler brought their children in to see what Grandview Kids is all about.

The day was definitely a success! All three kids who decided to spend their day with us learnt a lot and had a great time.

Cherie’s daughter Kendra said she “enjoyed being able to have a new experience being in the workplace and also being able to observe different kinds of therapy up close. I was able to observe different kinds of therapy like speech, physiotherapy and occupational therapy.  I also got to watch a cast being put on. I learned about some of the different ways to treat children with neurological diagnosis and various developmental delays. It was very informative and fun overall.  I think that it really helped to see a work environment that I’m interested in possibly pursuing.”

Kendra wasn’t the only one who had a great day. Shelley’s daughter Angela also enjoyed her day spending time with the kids in the classroom. Most of her day was spent in one of the CCS classrooms, playing with the kids, helping tidy, helping with outdoor recess, library time and yoga with some time with her mom Shelley at the end of the day. Angela was also able to learn a bit about what school looks like for the kids at Campbell Children’s School.

Susan Kehler’s son Jack got to explore some of his own personal interests during his day at Grandview.

“I really had a fun day.  I got to spend time with Jamie in IT and he showed me the server room.  I am taking a computer class now and it was good to see a server really working, what I’ve learned about in class makes more sense to me now.  Jamie also gave me some job ideas to think about in IT and told me how much money I would make in those jobs,” said Jack. “Spending time in the classroom and teaching the kids was fun too.  They were really cute and funny.  I think I helped teach them something.  I also got to see my mom and some of her friends work with kids.  The kids were cute and they played a lot of games.  They were really young so they need more games to keep interested in doing the work. I also learned that washing hands is a really big thing at Grandview, we watched a video on it and I can see why it is important.  My mom said that they have to be really careful to help keep kids healthy and that some kids have surgeries coming up or get sick easily. I am glad I got to spend the day at my mom’s work.  I think I understand more about the kids my mom helps and why she likes it.”

We’re so glad these three had such a great day at Grandview Kids. Who knows! Maybe these three will be future employees, helping inspire possibilities for children and youth with special needs.

Hooray for cookie lovers! There was some excitement at Grandview today as Tim Hortons presented us with a $136,081 cheque from the funds raised during September’s Smile Cookie Campaign.

The money raised will be going towards funding annual programs and services at the Centre.

Rudy Petrillo, Tim Hortons Regional Marketing Manager and Tim Hortons franchise owners Penny Hanley, Tyler Martin and Tennille Kerrigan attended the presentation and got to experience some of Grandview’s magic.

A few of the Grandview kids and staff members attended the cheque presentation and were so excited and grateful to be receiving this donation. The kids even sang a song to the Tim Hortons staff in attendance to show their thanks.  It was truly a heartwarming moment.

Rudy Petrillo said the community responded well to Grandview being the charity of choice for this year’s campaign.

“Seeing the impact that it has with the kids and obviously during the actual Smile Cookie week, Grandview brought out a lot of volunteers, a lot of kids, the social media support we saw within the community as well was very well received,” said Petrillo. “One of the reasons we selected Grandview was what they give back to the community. […] The owners felt that this type of a charity definitely represents Tim Hortons’ brand.”

Tyler Martin, franchise owner for Whitby and Oshawa locations, said he “voted for [Grandview] right away. We have, usually, three [charities] we pick from every year. This involved kids and the most important thing to me is kids.”

Grandview is thrilled that local owners, like Tyler Martin, voted for Grandview as this year’s recipients for Durham Region’s Smile Cookie Campaign. This donation will make a large, positive impact here at Grandview.

We want to thank our local cookie lovers for participating and making this donation possible. We couldn’t have done it without such an involved community, our amazing Grandview supporters, volunteers and everyone at Tim Hortons who made this possible.

Our Executive Director of Development for Grandview Children’s Foundation, Brigitte Tschinkel, was full of hope and happiness for what the future holds thanks to this donation. She was particularly moved by the kids’ involvement and thankfulness during the cheque presentation.

“I feel inspired. It’s so impactful,” said Tschinkel.” Having the kids involved in this type of presentation and having the Tim Hortons owners come out can get very emotional and knowing that the dollars that were raised will help more children on our waitlist is incredible.”

A parcel of land donated by the Town of Ajax on Harwood Avenue North has officially been marked the future site of the new Grandview Children’s Centre headquarters.

The official sign unveiling took place on November 3 with Ajax Council, local MPPs and Grandview staff and families on hand.

“There is so much excitement about a sign,” explained Grandview Children’s Centre CEO Lorraine Sunstrum-Mann. “This sign is more than just an indicator of where the future centre will be built. It marks a monumental milestone on our long-awaited journey to create a new Grandview.”

Grandview’s main facility in Oshawa was built in 1983 to serve just 400 children. It now serves more than 6,000 children and youth with special needs annually in Durham Region and there are 3,000 more on a wait-list.

“Ajax Council is proud to be a partner in bringing a new Grandview Children’s Centre to Ajax. Recognizing the growing need for vital Grandview services, the Town donated a five-acre parcel of land for the new facility in 2015. We are excited to celebrate the next step in this process, and look forward to having a new Grandview in Ajax,” said Mayor Parish.

Grandview Children’s Centre received approval and $31 million in funding from the Province in May to build the new headquarters.

“After 12 years of hard work advocating on behalf of our Grandview Children’s Centre, we have taken another step forward with the sign reveal this morning,” said Ajax-Pickering MPP, Joe Dickson. “I look forward to the sod turning, and the day we cut the ribbon to officially open the new facility right here in Ajax.”

Grandview is working alongside the Province to complete the final architectural design, construction plan, budget and timelines.

The new Grandview is expected to cost $50 million. Grandview Children’s Foundation is embarking on the Believe capital campaign to raise the funds still needed to build the new headquarters and support the specialized programs and services offered by Grandview.

“We believe every child deserves the opportunity to reach their full potential and dream big. With the community’s help, we know we can help Grandview Kids achieve them,” said Grandview Children’s Foundation Executive Director of Development. Brigitte Tschinkel.

To donate to the Grandview Kids Believe campaign go to https://grandviewkidsfoundation.ca/capital-campaign/

Grandview Kids supporters and cookie lovers alike are responsible for the success of the 2017 Tim Hortons’ Smile Cookie campaign.

$136,081 was raised for Grandview Kids during the week of September 11-17.

“We are so thankful to the Tim Hortons restaurant owners for selecting Grandview Kids as the charity of choice for this year’s Smile Cookie campaign in Durham Region,” said Brigitte Tschinkel, Grandview Children’s Foundation’s Executive Director of Development. “The money raised will be put toward funding annual programs and services at the Centre.”

Local Tim Hortons franchise owners will present a cheque to Grandview Children’s Foundation on Friday, November 3 at noon.

Thanks again to everyone who bought a Smile Cookie in support of Grandview Kids. Every dollar counts!

Take a look around the next time you pay a visit to Grandview Kids in Oshawa. You’ll notice we’ve made a change. The accessibility symbols in our parking lot and throughout the centre have a new look.

Grandview Kids has adopted the new dynamic symbol of The Forward Movement, a symbol which shows the person in their ability, not disability.

The Forward Movement was founded by 23-year-old Dylan Itzikowitz. The idea came to fruition after Dylan became injured following an accident involving a vehicle. He was a pedestrian. The injuries he sustained resulted in him relying on the use of a wheelchair for mobility.

“I learned very quickly how inaccessible my old life was. Both physical barriers but also social. People began to see taking me out as a burden and strangers would think it was ‘so kind’ of my friends to be out with a kid in a wheelchair,” Dylan explained.

While in the hospital recovering, Dylan read about the Accessible Icon Project, the American organization that designed the Dynamic Symbol. He reached out to the organization about bringing the symbol to Canada.

“At first, I was doing it as a hobby to keep myself busy. But as it grew, I learned how it could be used as a vehicle for education and awareness. Also, our model around endorsements allowed me to develop strong personal relationships with other people doing similar work, which really nurtured my knowledge, passion, and empathy.”

Dylan has help from his friend and co-founder Jonathan. The pair are working to have the symbol adopted in towns and cities across the country. Grandview Children’s Centre is the first to display the symbols in Durham Region but we have hope that we won’t be the last.

Thank you to The Forward Movement for helping Grandview Kids move forward with accessibility and awareness. Let’s make this change in symbol spark conversations about the importance of physical and social inclusion for people of all abilities.