Young mothers get good advice in program

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If there was to be one motto of the Mother Child Futures program in Prince Albert, it might be: "Every one needs some help some time."

From free milk for pregnant and nursing mothers to Life Skills classes, and from how-to-cook seminars to an afternoon break for moms, the program provides help to mothers struggling with the everyday challenges of raising children.

Candy Renas, 23, is one of the moms taking advantage of the support Child Mother Futures offers.

When she started in the program, Renas was going to family counselling for violence in the home. Her counsellor referred her to the program, and she began attending in September 1997.

It's made a world of difference said the young mother. She started getting home visits from one of the program's community workers and has found a friend to talk over her personal and family problems with.

It helps, she said, just to blow off some steam once in a while. And she now has a source of advice on parenting questions that come up. Be it potty training or vaccinations, Renas can now feel more confident about her parenting knowledge, thanks to the seminars and counselling the program provides.

Renas has joined the Moms Afternoon Out and now has an outing to look forward to once a week. Along with program staff and a group of mom's like her, Renas can now spend an afternoon discussing different issues picked by the group. The children - Renas has Mikayla, 4, and Johnathen, 1 - are taken care of in a daycare setting in the next room.

What's good for the mom has turned out to be good for the children as well, said Renas.

"Mikala gets to play and make new friends," she said, "so she can get the social skills that she isn't getting at home."

According to Elizabeth Friere-Benson, program manager, Child Mother Futures can be a big support to mothers.

"Parenting is a very complex issue,and it becomes even more complex when you are very young," she said. "It's even more complex if you are from another place - from a reserve or from the north. For many people, Prince Albert is a large place and you don't have the support systems for you."

Many of the participants in the program are referred from other agencies or doctors because they don't have anyone to help them learn about raising their children. Making connections in Prince Albert can be daunting, and they need help getting plugged in.

Freire-Benson said the average age of moms in the program is 23 years of age, but many are still teenagers, and the cultural background of the participants is overwhelmingly Aboriginal. A full 81 per cent of the moms she sees are either status Indians, non-status Indians or Metis.

She attributes that high percentage to the poverty still faced by a large number of First Nations people. Fully three-quarters of her participants are on welfare, and only four per cent are working.

That poverty, she said, translates into a lack of education, a lack of information and a lack of a support network.

"So it's the full spectrum of poverty," she said. "We know that women that are poor and have children tend to lag behind in their schooling."

Carol McLeod, 29, joined Child Mother Futures as part of the free milk program while she was pregnant with her third child. She then got involved in the weekly Mom's Afternoon Out group.

"I said 'sure, that will help me get out,'" McLeod said. "It gives us a chance to meet other people."

That can be a life saver when you're a single mom with three kids and no transportation. The program will pick up the participants and drive them home. The children get to play and have a snack while the moms hash out their parenting challenges.

"We all have the same problems about handling kids and their situations," McLeod said. "It's hard when you're alone to do things. I find it hard to even go out for a walk."

Besides the Life Skills program and the Mom's afternoon out, a key program offered by Mother Child Futures is the Baby Safe Support Group.

The groupis for pregnant women who are battling addictions such as drugs and alcohol. It meets weekly and offers a supportive, non-judgmental environment for the struggling moms, Friere-Benson said.

After six months in the program, Renas said her home life has improved. When new problems crop up in her life now, Renas knows they are not insurmountable and that there is a support network for her in town.

"I didn't know there were so many programs in Prince Albert," Renas said. "But the sad thing is a person doesn't know until something bad happens."

Renas now volunteers as part of a reading program that sees other moms come to her home. Parents learn how to make reading more enjoyable for their kids.

"I'm getting a lot of things through here," Renas said. "A lot of doors are opening up."

The Child Mother Futures program is now into its fourth year. Initially a three-year pilot program started by several different groups in town, Friere-Benson said it has proven its worth to the community. There are now four community workers handling 189 clients.

So far, 65 people have graduated from the Life Skills course that is offered twice a year and runs for 18 weeks, teaching parenting skills, self-improvment and computer training.

Friere-Benson said that particular course can change a mother's entire life. She said most of those graduates are now pursuing other things, such as college or university training or are back working.

"I like to say that when women get into the Life Skills courses, they get re-acquainted with their dreams," she said.