Left to right: Kendra Abraham, Board Chair for Child Witness Centre, Robert Coole, Ontario Trillium Foundation representative, Aislinn Clancy, MPP for Kitchener Centre, and Robin Heald, Executive Director for Child Witness Centre, at the celebration for the Ontario Trillium Foundation grant on Wednesday, October 1, 2025.
On Wednesday, local MPP Aislinn Clancy met with Child Witness Centre (CWC) representatives and partners to celebrate a $95,700 Seed grant they received from the provincial government’s Ontario Trillium Foundation (OTF) to help bridge critical gaps in mental health support for young survivors.
“The integration of cultural and trauma-informed support is so important for the long-term wellbeing of victims of abuse and crime, especially for young victims. I’m glad the grant will help the Child Witness Centre expand their wraparound services, to help break the isolation that often comes with trauma and ensure that our community members are not left alone in their time of need,” said Aislinn Clancy, MPP for Kitchener Centre. “Healing is a collective journey, and when a community comes together to support its most vulnerable, it creates a foundation of compassion and resilience that strengthens everyone. By investing in these services, we’re not just helping individuals heal, we’re building a more supportive and connected community where every person has the opportunity to thrive.”
Awarded in September 2024, the grant has funded critical strides made by the Child Witness Centre in addressing one of the most pressing challenges facing their clients: the lack of immediate access to mental health support and counselling.
This timely funding enables the agency to deliver short-term, trauma-informed crisis counselling to children and youth when they need it most, while waiting for long-term care to become available. The project is aimed at not only supporting young survivors at a crucial time in their healing journey, but also helping to reduce pressure on already overburdened community mental health services.
“The impact of this OTF grant has been an incredible investment,” said Robin Heald, Executive Director of Child Witness Centre. “We’ve strengthened our wraparound supports and enhanced our ability to provide immediate, trauma-informed care. Early intervention is essential for long-term recovery and wellness, and this funding helped us bridge a gap that so many children and families fall through.”
Child Witness Centre staff and Board members were joined by Aislinn Clancy, MPP for Kitchener Centre (back row, far left) and Robert Coole, Ontario Trillium Foundation representative (back row, third from right), at the Child and Youth Advocacy Centre of Waterloo Region (located inside Camino Wellbeing + Mental Health).
The OTF grant came at a time when the charity is experiencing high demand for their services and stretched resources – resulting in them being forced to start a waitlist in late 2022. Staff had to make difficult decisions daily on who they could serve and who had to wait for their vital services. A total of 447 young people spent time on their waitlist before it was eliminated in March 2025. Now, they are doing everything they can to avoid its return, and to strengthen services to better meet the needs of their clients. The OTF grant helped accomplish that!
“When children and youth are supported at the moment they need it most, the long-term impact of trauma can be significantly reduced,” said Heald. “We’re committed to doing everything we can to prevent another waitlist. Our goal is to continue strengthening our services to meet the needs of our community and prevent revictimization and the need for ongoing downstream services.”
Child Witness Centre believes every child and youth who has been hurt and harmed should be supported through the criminal justice system – and not have to walk the very difficult journey alone. That is why they work closely with them, and their caregivers, from the time of investigation through to a court resolution. This non-profit organization began in the community in 1981 and has been passionately serving local young survivors and families since. To learn more about Child Witness Centre and their work in the community, visit www.childwitness.com.
The Ontario Trillium Foundation (OTF) is an agency of the Ontario government with a mission to build healthy and vibrant communities across the province. Last year, OTF invested nearly $105M into 732 community projects and multi-sector partnerships. Projects aim to enhance economic well-being, foster more active lifestyles, support child and youth development, provide spaces for people to come together and connect, and create a more sustainable environment. Visit otf.ca to learn more.