Status of Women committee  From my perspective, leading an organization, I would say that I hear most often from families, “We don't know where to go. We need someone to help us.” We don't necessarily have in our community that navigator person whom we could send them to. Perhaps that is an opportunity for the federal government.

Status of Women committee  Could I leap in for a moment?

Status of Women committee  It really depends on the family getting to the right person to help them. They need help over and above the time it takes to fill in these forms. One of the problems is the literacy level required by some of the forms. I know they are written in plain language, but they can be very hard to understand.

Status of Women committee  I actually don't know whether all our families have access to the web. Some don't have email. Some would like us to text them because they can get free text packages.

Status of Women committee  I'm sure there is. In terms of what we call paid employment, I know that Sarnia has done well. Locally, we have a number of Tim Hortons—I hope it's okay to advertise—that do provide those opportunities. A number of businesses engage students over the summertime with the support of Community Living, and some of those businesses have been able to keep those individuals on.

Status of Women committee  You are very correct. At Pathways, however, we do encourage youth and teens to volunteer because that does give them the work experience, but we really hope that they won't end up volunteering as their job, because that's not fair.

Status of Women committee  We will.

Status of Women committee  We did talk to each other about this before this morning. We are not necessarily an organization that has a lot to do with federal benefits, being funded provincially through the Ministry of Children and Youth Services. As you say, tax rebates are fine if you pay tax. There is a gap between what children are eligible for now and what they're eligible for once they turn 18, 19, or 21, depending on what the cut-off is.

Status of Women committee  Sure, and thank you for doing the research to discover our new lifelong learning program. That was in direct response to what families told us, to what young people told us, that “We want something to do that is not considered just being babysat, like day care, once we leave school.”

Status of Women committee  When it comes to the funding for families, number one is trying to have everybody on the same page so that information can be delivered. But even in some situations, it's too much for a parent. I've had some families that just can't manage. When they do receive funding, there are a lot of barriers and stipulations around it, and then there's the paperwork.

Status of Women committee  Thank you for that. That's a very good question. While I know that, on the Six Nations first nation closer to Brantford, they do have qualified individuals to provide pediatric rehab services, we are not in that situation yet. However, with the support of industry partners, we are beginning an initiative that will bring our therapists onto first nations to provide services in the way they would like them to be provided and, at the same time, support an indigenous worker as part of that team for them to be able to support families with therapy activities when we're not there.

Status of Women committee  Good morning, and thank you for the invitation to speak today. Marilyn, it's especially good to see you. My role this morning is simply to set the stage and give you the context for the family experiences that Jennifer will share with you. Situated in the city of Sarnia in southwest Ontario, Pathways is a provider of children's rehab and other educational services and supports to about 2,400 children and their families.