Have you ever attended one of CTN’s Coffee Chats or Halloween parties? If so, you may have met a Local Team Facilitator (LTF) who helps organize these events for families.

The primary role of the LTF is to connect people, purpose and passion to promote inclusion and participation of children and youth with special needs. LTFs promote strong relationships between families, service providers and communities. LTFs play a key role at what you and your child experience in our local communities through events, communication and your local CTN site.

How They Work:

Child and Family Team:
LTFs encourage family engagement and satisfaction by hosting family events and providing parent education and community resource information.

Local Team:
LTFs promote collaboration of service providers by managing sites and equipment, providing training and resource support, and communicating information with local team members to share with children and families.

Community:
LTFs facilitate inclusion and participation in the community by raising awareness, building capacity, identifying gaps and barriers and linking community organizations.

Network:
LTFs support the vision of Building Brighter Futures Together by promoting integrated community care, encouraging system change, and leading innovative ways to meet the needs of children and youth with special needs. The LTF is the local liaison for the network.



































 

What do LTFs have to say about the work they do?

Jennifer Phillips, Collingwood LTF

My favourite thing about my role as LTF is:
Connecting with the community and finding ways to promote participation and inclusion of kids and youth with special needs.
 
My favourite moment in my role as LTF:
When I heard that our community received a donation to purchase 10 sports wheelchairs for recreational programming like wheelchair basketball.

Cheryl Westcott, Richmond Hill/Georgina LTF

My favourite moment in my role as LTF was:
The happiness and relief a family shared when they told me this was the very first picture they had of their child with Santa.  The sensory-friendly environment and patience of staff and our volunteer Santa and Elf provided them with a treasured memory for many years to come.

The number one reason for families to come to our events is:
To connect with other parents and children in an environment of inclusivity where they can relax and their child can just by themselves without fear of judgement.

What a support group can do is surprisingly powerful. I felt lighter and happier when I walked out of the door of Covernotes, though I only spent less than an hour there. Meeting you guys make me feel I was understood and heard. CTN parent who attend Coffee Chat in Richmond Hill

Debbie Bushby, LTF Alliston

My favourite moment in my role as LTF:
It was when a little friend who had never been able to knock on someone's door at Halloween (as he used a wheelchair for mobility), knocked on every door in our building and said trick or treat.
 
The number one reason for families to come to our events:
An opportunity for their kids and youth to participate and have fun!

Jacqueline Wesselingh, LTF Barrie and Orillia

My favourite thing about my role as LTF is:
Being part of the loanable bike program and watching the faces of children who were able to ride a bike for the first time. I enjoy the diversity that the role brings and the ability to connect with our communities and partners.

My favourite thing about working with families in the community is:
Learning about the barriers, challenges and strengths of families within our communities gives me knowledge. This knowledge informs the work that we can do to support families.

Christine Ko, LTF Markham

My favourite moment in my role as LTF:
My favorite moment was during the Lego Building Events we held last year. Despite not knowing each other prior to the event the children and their siblings were able to play together and using their imagination to collaborate on a project together. Without having planned it to be a coffee chat for the parents, they naturally connected with each other sharing resources and contact information. The event became a real inclusive family event.

What do you like about working with families in your communities?
As a resident of York Region, I feel privileged to be able to help families who live within my community. I am privileged to be able to get to know families and hear their stories. Being able to learn about their barriers and challenges and using CTN’s vast network as well as connections I have developed to help them cope or at times overcome these barriers and challenges. I love being a part of a network working together to support families.

Mary Garcia, LTF Vaughan and Newmarket/Bradford

My favourite moment in my role as LTF:
It was seeing a little guy with autism who used the bouncy castle at the Halloween event for the first time ever!

My favourite thing about my role as LTF is:
Connecting parents with other parents during Coffee Chats and noticing that it immediately helps parents feel less alone.

My favourite thing about working with families in the community is:
An opportunity to encourage parents, children and youth to participate as a family in an inclusive environment and having fun together!

To contact your Local Team Facilitator to visit the site, learn about community events and resources and to connect with other families, visit our locations page.

2019-01-11