A Tribute to our Founders
Early this year, we announced that Seniors Come Share Society had changed its name to Brella Community Services Society (Brella). When considering such a major change, it is always a good practice to reflect on our journey and to honour our pioneers. With that in mind, Gordie Hogg, Board Member, and I met with the last surviving founder of our organization, Ellen Kennett. Now 93 years old, Ellen is the remarkably intelligent woman who, along with her co-founders, had a vision 45 years ago to help vulnerable people in her community.
In 1977, Ellen Sinclair (now Kennett), Ida Miller, Joyce Kennett, Joyce Palmer, Muriel Brodie, and Reverend Howard Filsinger recognized the need for dedicated services to support their older neighbours who struggled with feelings of loneliness and isolation. The founding members, four of whom would become our first board of directors, learned about the Adult Day Program offered in a couple of neighbourhoods in Vancouver, and they determined that a similar program would have a huge impact in their community.
Knowing that the federal government provided funding under the New Horizons for Seniors initiative, they obtained the application package and met at the White Rock Health Centre to write the first grant application. To their delight, they received the very positive response that their submission was successful. The White Rock Come Share Society was born, and the first Adult Day Program opened in White Rock.
The initial grant from New Horizons only extended for one year, but that was sufficient time to demonstrate the value of the Day Program. The Board went into high gear writing grant applications and making presentations to potential funders. Their efforts were rewarded by receiving long-term contracts from, initially, the Ministry of Health and, eventually, the Fraser Health Authority, whose financial support continues to this day.
Over the decades, the Day Program evolved from being provided two days a week to six days and expanded to include three locations: South Surrey, Newton, and Guildford. The White Rock Come Share Society was renamed Seniors Come Share Society to reflect its expansion outside the geographical boundary of White Rock and to underscore the integration of new services under the Community Support Program, and now Brella Community Services Society to demonstrate inclusiveness and embrace the changing needs our community. At present, Brella offers services under three banners: Adult Day Program; Community Services; and Dementia, Caregiver and Family Services.
Listening to Ellen and Gordie reminisce about the history of our great organization, I realized that, while it had developed over the years, the foundational ideology was still relevant. Ellen and her colleagues articulated objectives back then that remain in our lexicon today. These include:
to connect isolated adults,
to develop social skills,
to provide recreational activities,
to delay institutionalized living, and
to contribute to emotional and physical well-being.
Ellen’s contributions did not end there. During our visit, we talked about the rationale behind the name change from Come Share to Brella. She admitted that she and some of her friends felt very connected to the name Seniors Come Share, but, in the end, she understood our reasons and pledged her support to promote the name Brella to her friends. At that point, Gordie and I confessed that we had made many attempts at finding an appropriate tagline, but we could not agree on anything. After thinking about it for one minute, she called out “Brella, a caring community.” So, it is!
Thank you, Ellen and colleagues, for your collective wisdom and vision. Your courageous actions have made a real difference in the lives of tens of thousands of people. Your legacy will continue to prosper. That is our promise to you.
Together, we can create a caring community!
Louise Tremblay, Executive Director