It’s been three years into Iain Harper’s tenure as executive director of Community Living Quinte West (CLQW) and some of his grand plans, much to his chagrin, are being held hostage by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Harper said he joined the organization that supports individuals with developmental and intellectual disabilities to shape it into a more ‘public-facing’ agency and to foster greater interaction with the community. He was also looking forward to spearheading CLQW’s 60th anniversary celebrations to recognize its deep roots in the community.
Moreover, the fundraising effort toward renovations for a new seven-bed respite centre at 11 Canal St. in Trenton, which was formerly the head office of CLQW, was also on the front burner.
Unfortunately, to a large degree these initiatives were stalled by the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic in the spring of 2020 that continues to be a major disruptor within the CLQW and elsewhere.
“The terrible thing was is that we had our 60th anniversary, which is a milestone that needed to be celebrated. We had prepared and we brainstormed ideas what we wanted to do and we were working on our zoning for a respite centre and all of the sudden COVID hit. And, all of the sudden, we found that our 60th anniversary just didn’t happen,” said Harper. “It slowed the fundraising down for our respite centre and now we’re trying to gear back up so we can raise the funds and get the respite centre built because it needs to be built for our families. They just aren’t getting a break and COVID has made it so much more difficult.”
Harper comes to CLQW with an extensive background in non-profits over the past 39 years, having worked in youth corrections, community counselling and the military. Although he doesn’t possess a wealth of background in the developmental services side of the ledger, he noted he’s ably aided by Lorrie Arsenault, CLQW’s director of programs and services.
“I did not have a background in developmental services, my role is more of business acumen and things of that nature. The expert is Lorrie. She deals with all the issues with developmental services and I have learned a lot over the three years. I think we’re a pretty good team,” said Harper.
As an overview of the CLQW, it serves clients exclusively in Quinte West. The organization currently has 50 employees and runs four residential group homes throughout the region that serves a total of 19 clients. Currently, CLQW has one respite bed at its Lafferty Lodge location, which helps caregivers get some time away.
“Right now, there are a lot of individuals in the Quinte West region that live at home with their parents, the parents may be aging, getting older and it’s harder to support their loved one and hadn’t had a vacation. They just want to get that vacation and go away,” explained Harper.
The CLQW also has a supportive independent living program, which is where people live on their own but require support. “We have three workers that go out and support those individuals, whether it’s helping them with their cooking, or with their groceries, different things that they may have some difficulty with, but they do it on their own,” he said.
A new program — the enhanced SIL (Supported Independent Living) program — is for clients who are working toward independent living, but require a higher level of support, explained Harper.
To learn more about his journey, click the link below.
