January 8, 2026
Happy New Year! I hope 2026 brings you peace, happiness, and good health.
This is the time of New Year’s resolutions. What do we want to improve and what do we want to keep doing? To answer those questions, I am guided by the truth that supporting people to live a good life requires knowledge, skill, and a big heart.
The needs of the people we support are becoming more complex. It is more important than ever that we keep learning so that we can make the best and biggest impact within our limited resources.
That’s why we are lucky to have St.Amant Research Centre’s Evaluation Office (EO). The EO supports our programs to answer important questions like: Do our services have the impact we want them to have? Do the people we support benefit from our services? How can we do better?
The EO team is currently working with our Case Management services for autistic children and their families to answer those questions. Right now, we are providing case management to about three thousand families; another thousand are waiting for service. With so many families on our waitlist, we have a duty to look closely at how we provide our services. Once the EO has shared its results, we can apply that new knowledge to benefit more families.
Of course, knowledge alone is not enough- the heart matters. I saw how big hearts translate into good work at the Supported Independent Living (SIL) holiday gathering last month. People in SIL all live on their own with varying levels of support. Some work; some are retirees. There are athletes, chess players, and artists of all kinds. Each person lives their own life on their own terms. But they also clearly enjoy each others’ company. Staff have done a great job of honouring each person’s choices while also creating opportunities for connection and community. That is heart in action.
No matter what else 2026 brings us, I know that we will continue to grow our hearts, deepen our knowledge and sharpen our skills.
I look forward to the year ahead and to what we will accomplish together.
