Community Counselling Centre: “It feels like home”

Having faced her own struggles, which played a role in her desire to become a counsellor, says the environment presented at the Community Counsellor Centre has been beneficial for herself in coping.

“I grew in leaps and bounds as a human, not that I didn’t expect to – I don’t think you go into something like that and think ‘I’m not going to change’. It’s such a gift, this job. If you’re able to be open to it, you can grow so much and the program is such a mentorship. They meet you where you’re at and they grow your strengths. It’s very idyllic because you’re going through growth while you’re working with clients who are going through growth. It helps sometimes to have that memory when people come in and I remember what that felt like to not know anybody, to think to come in and wonder ‘am I going to get help, is this going to work this time. It comes full circle and it’s beautiful.”

The Community Counselling Centre, which has been operating as a not-for-profit the past few years, is serving as this year’s beneficiary of the Miracle on Third, however, given last week’s new restrictions laid down by the Provincial Health Office, this year’s event will look substantially different with fundraising efforts being switch over to online.

“The need for donations is huge right now. There are so many ways people can donate,” explained Jillian Wagg, the interim Director of the PG Community Counselling Centre. “Just $20 will offer a free session to somebody. Something like e $100 will help provide a month of free counselling to someone. If you donate anywhere between $300-$500, that’s going directly to a brand new computer so we can actually keep offering these services. And then those larger donations, which we are always so grateful for, of anywhere between $1,000 to $3,000 will just pay rent.”

And with those donations, it then allows for the Community Counselling Centre to focus on providing the care and support to more people at a time where mental health support is a massive need in Prince George.

The Community Counselling Centre serves two important functions here in the north: one, they provide low cost, low barrier long term mental health services for community members. Secondly, they train masters level counselling students from UNBC with high-quality teaching and training in mental health.

If you want to donate, you can head to the Community Counselling Centre’s website.

by Ethan Ready

Community Counselling Centre: “It feels like home”

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