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CENTRE WELLINGTON – One local mother is working hard to bring a Block Parent program to Centre Wellington, what is believed to be a first for the community.
A mother of three children under six, longtime Fergus resident Sarah O'Brien believes creating a Block Parent program in Centre Wellington will help keep her neighbourhood safe in the face of rapid growth.
A network of safe and police-screened homes for people of all ages to access, registered block parents are identifiable by a red and white sign placed in a street-facing window when they are home and available to provide assistance or call for help.
"I feel like there's this battle between wanting them to grow up independent but also knowing the world is changing," said O'Brien. "Not everything is as safe as it used to be when we were all growing up."
When O'Brien tried to start the group up last summer after several little incidences in the community "made her spidey senses feel nervous," the idea stalled after several people didn't follow through on their police checks.
However, several recent reports of people going door to door in Centre Wellington neighbourhoods posing as Red Cross volunteers "reignited the fire" and O'Brien says she's received approximately 20 applications since she posted to Facebook last week.
According to Block Parent Canada, a lack of volunteers is one of the main reasons programs have been dwindling in recent years.
"I think it's important that kids grow up knowing what's a safe space and knowing where they can get help from," said O'Brien, who runs a small business teaching First Aid courses across Wellington County. "Being able to tell kids exactly what symbol to look for to know that this person is a safe grown-up, I think is very important too."
The program will extend to both rural and urban areas in Fergus, Elora, Belwood and Pilkington, where a new subdivision is planned, and should begin later this month, once police checks are in and the signs have arrived.
Block Parent Canada is not aware of a former program in Centre Wellington, although a program is currently active in Wellington North.
"I've had people ask if there's any point in participating if they live outside of town (but) in my opinion, it's good if anyone does it," said O'Brien. "(For example), imagine if a new driver's car breaks down and they need to get home, at least they know they have a safe space they can go to ask for help."
In the coming months, O'Brien is planning to visit local elementary schools to educate the kids on the Block Parent symbol's meaning and attract more parents to the program.
A voluntary meeting going over the basics will take place in the next few weeks and O'Brien is encouraging any businesses willing to sponsor the group to reach out directly.
Isabel Buckmaster is the Local Journalism Initiative reporter for GuelphToday. LJI is a federally-funded program.
