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How Q̓ʷalayu House provided a safe place for this Port Hardy expectant mom travelling to deliver her first baby

When Port Hardy resident Angie was expecting her first little one, she was a bundle of different emotions. And when her midwife told her that she needed to leave her...
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How your support helps Island kids like Nathan

Nathan is a funny and friendly ten-year-old who loves building Lego and playing with his cousins. He also lives with a rare neurological condition that makes life that much more...
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How Bear Essentials and Jeneece Place helped this Tofino family

When Tofino couple Francis and Hanne made the journey to Nanaimo for a routine midwife appointment, the last thing they were expecting was to meet their baby girl that same...
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Meet Jodie: A mom explains why Jeneece Place is vital for Island families

When Island mom Jodie’s water broke only 25 weeks into her second pregnancy, she knew something was very wrong. After rushing to the hospital, she was told that she was...
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How Bear Essentials supports the emotional wellbeing of these Island brothers with complex needs

For any new parent, adjusting to the role of parenthood can be challenging. Between helping care for her three brothers with Down Syndrome, her respite kids, and her two sons...
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Island kids like Nathan need your help this holiday season

In the midst of her second healthy pregnancy, Island mom Laura was caught off guard when she went into labour at only 34 weeks. The last thing she was expecting...
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Give Island kids a home away from home & keep families together this Thanksgiving

Island youth Abigail is all too familiar with doctors’ offices, ambulance rides, and the surgical unit at the hospital. At only 16 years old, she has already had more than...
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How Bear Essentials supports the mobility and independence of Island kid Payton

Island mom Shannon has big hopes and dreams for her eldest daughter, Payton. The outgoing and energetic four-year-old loves swimming, gymnastics, and playing with the animals on her family’s farm....
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How Bear Essentials has helped this Island family overcome isolation

To say the Stuckenbergs are a busy family would be an understatement. Between their newborn son, Louis, two-year-old daughter, Sophie, and oldest child, Huxley, who is almost seven years old,...
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Meet the Thompsons: The importance of a home away from home in Campbell River

Already parents of two boys, Courtenay-based couple John and Melissa felt well prepared as their daughter’s due date approached. All of that quickly changed when Melissa began feeling ill on...
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Meet Lucas: How Bear Essentials is a lifeline for families of Island kids with complex needs

Island kid Lucas is a happy little guy. Like many other five-year-olds, he loves learning at school, playing with his brother, and swimming. While in many ways Lucas is just...
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Meet Island kid Emmett: Why this Salt Spring Island family gives back to Jeneece Place

For fifth-generation Salt Spring Island resident, Becky and her husband Dane, fishing is a way of life. And after their middle son, Emmett, recently celebrated his fifth birthday, donating wild-caught...