OPTIONS Head Office and Day Program will be closed Monday, February 18, 2019 for Family Day. UPCOMING COURSES: Abuse Prevention & Response Positive Behaviour Support Courses: - February 9, 2019 @ OPTIONS Quarry Park Office Emergency First Aid & CPR Course: - February 22, 2019-9:00am @ OPTIONS Day Program We are delighted to welcome the following new members to the OPTIONS team: - Rachel Andrew - Liz Bennett - Midhun Kurian - Clara Hillman - Kelli Swain - Heidy Plangg Crisis Prevention Intervention (CPI): - February 28, 2019-8:30am-5:00pm @ The Lodge - Unit 331 3750 46 Ave NE *Please Contact Tanya to register
Quarry Park Office Meets Stanley Stanley is a 9-week-old Australian Shepard / Collie Cross owned by our Positive Outcomes Coordinator, Derek Jassman. Welcome to the OPTIONS family Stanley.
CULTURAL SPOTLIGHT WITH CHESMAN CANON Support worker at Altadore House Republic of Columbia Capital: Bogota Official Language: Spanish Population: May 2018 estimate - 49,996,445 Currency: Peso (COP) I was born in Buenavista, a small department of Quindío, Columbia. Buenavista is a municipality in the south-central part of the department of Quindío, Colombia. It is known and named for the spectacular view over the department. The township is located 33 kilometers south of the departmental capital Armenia. Wikipedia I went to school at the Jose Maria College in Columbia The Jose Maria College is a globally competitive school and is well-known for its World-Class facilities. I left Columbia and came to Canada looking for a better life. I have my wife and children here with me. One of the things that I like about living in Calgary is that there are a lot of jobs here. I don t really miss anything about living in Columbia. My favorite food is Mexican food.
Bev LeBlanc, Geraldine Lalic, Rose Dela Cruz, Beth Yachimec, Kim Wood, Arlene Aragon on lunch Prep at the Calgary Drop In Centre. Lunch Prep at the Calgary Drop- In Centre Beth Yachimec
Beth Yachimec and Sean Yost put together a Hospital Bed for one of the Residential homes. Tanya Idt pitches in and helps move a mattress to one of the Residential Homes Hospital Bed Assembly is a Success
What is Valentine's Day and how did it start? Valentine's Day, or St Valentine's Day, is celebrated every year on 14 February. It's the day when people show their affection for another person or people by sending cards, flowers or chocolates with messages of love. Who was St Valentine? The day gets its name from a famous saint, but there are several stories of who he was. The popular belief about St Valentine is that he was a priest from Rome in the third century AD. Emperor Claudius II had banned marriage because he thought married men were bad soldiers. (Claudius II found it difficult to find men to join his army and believed this was due to a strong attachment to their wives and families.) Valentine felt this was unfair, so he broke the rules and arranged marriages in secret. When Claudius found out, Valentine was thrown in jail and sentenced to death. There, he fell in love with the jailer's daughter and when he was taken to be killed on 14 February, he sent her a love letter signed "from your Valentine". How did Valentine's Day start? The first Valentine's Day was in the year 496! Having a particular Valentine's Day is a very old tradition, thought to have originated from a Roman festival. The Romans had a festival called Lupercalia in the middle of February - officially the start of their springtime. It's thought that as part of the celebrations, boys drew names of girls from a box. They'd be boyfriend and girlfriend during the festival and sometimes they'd get married. Later on, the church wanted to turn this festival into a Christian celebration and decided to use it to remember St Valentine too. Gradually, St Valentine's name started to be used by people to express their feelings to those they loved. What is Valentine's Day and how did it start? - CBBC News round https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/16945378
Special Birthday Celebrations: Maria Lyon s 50th Birthday Party was held at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in NE Calgary. Many of Maria s friends and family joined in to help celebrate her special day.
FEBRUARY IS BLACK HISTORY MONTH February marks Black History Month, a tribute to African-American men and women who have made significant contributions to America and the rest of the world in the fields of science, politics, law, sports, the arts, entertainment, and many other fields. First Senator: Hiram Rhodes Revels was the first African American ever elected to the U.S. Senate. He represented the state of Mississippi from February 1870 to March First Senator: Hiram Rhodes Revels was the first African American ever elected to the U.S. Senate. He represented the state of Mississippi from February 1870 to March 1871. First Woman Representative: Shirley Chisholm was the first African American woman elected to the House of Representatives. She was elected in 1968 and represented the state of New York. She broke ground again four years later in 1972 when she was the first major party African-American candidate and the first female candidate for president of the United States. White House: In 2009, Barack Obama became the first African- American president in U.S. history. He occupied the White House for two consecutive terms, serving from 2009 to 2017.
CULTURAL SPOTLIGHT WITH LUVENE MCINTOSH Administrative Assistant at the Quarry Park Office Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Capital: Kingstown Population: 109,643 (2016) World Bank Vernacular language: Vincentian Creole National Anthem: Saint Vincent, Land So Beautiful I was born in Kingstown, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG). St. Vincent and the Grenadines lies to the west of Barbados, south of Saint Lucia and north of Grenada, in the Caribbean Sea. St Vincent and the Grenadines include the main island of Saint Vincent and the northern Grenadines, which are a chain of smaller islands stretching south from St. Vincent to Grenada. There are 32 islands and cays that make up St Vincent and the Grenadines. Only nine of the islands are inhabited, which include the mainland of St Vincent and the Grenadines Islands: Young Island, Bequia, Mustique, Canouan, Union Island, Mayreau, Petit St Vincent and Palm Island. * Figure 1 Most of St Vincent is rugged and mountainous with an active volcano. Many of St Vincent s beaches are of black volcanic sand, while the Grenadine beaches are of fine white sand. Unfortunately, I didn t spend much time in St. Vincent as a child. I left St. Vincent and came to Canada with my parents when I was 4 years old. We settled in SE Calgary. I have a very large family. They are scattered throughout Canada and in St. Vincent, but the majority live here in Calgary. I am married with 3 children and I have 3 sisters; all which have their own families, so I have many nieces and nephews too. Some of the things I like about living in Calgary are the people, the mountains and the many parks and attractions that you can visit. I love how Calgary is an easy going, family-oriented community. One of the things I don t like is the constantly changing climate. Although I have been here many years, I m still not used to the cold winters. I don t like them at all! *Figure 1: Caribbean Yacht Charter Cruising Grounds St Vincent & the Grenadines, windwardschooner.com, Accessed August 20, 2018, <https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:and9gcqhahgieusmy3a9xjbhf7n5oa457mixojgq4gjlblqyuy39mgrp>
It s during the winter months that I really miss St. Vincent. I miss being able to spend most of my days outside in the warm sun, no matter the time of year. Even when it s raining, it s warm outside. I miss being able to go to the beach and the carnival festival in July. Fortunately, I have been able to go back to St. Vincent and the Grenadines on a regular basis. I try to make it back home every two years or so. ST. VINCENT AND THE GRENADINES https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahukewj7_tuvxp7cahvajdqihtikcccqjrx6bagbeau&url=https%3a%2f%2fwww. pinterest.com%2fheartii%2fst-vincent-and-the-grenadines%2f&psig=aovvaw0s06mbigsmeqcu8f3devqq&ust=1534954199870597