‘Felt like home’: YWCA Regina opens Kikakihtânaw Centre for Women and Families

Vulnerable women, children and families in Regina will now have another place to access supports with the opening of a new centre that will provide valuable services under one roof.

On Wednesday, the YWCA opened the Kikakihtânaw Centre for Women and Families, located at 2817 12th Ave.

The facility looks to address the barriers faced by women fleeing homelessness or violent situations.

“Our women have been in this space now for three weeks, and I can already see the way that they navigate a day, how they gather together what they’re doing to support each other is different,” YWCA Regina CEO Melissa Coomber-Bendtsen said.

For YWCA resident Tanya Bunnie, it was a chance for a fresh start

“It literally felt like home,” Bunnie said. “I came here and there was no barriers or anything it was all fresh and new and it was for me.”

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Bunnie had previously been living on the streets, in and out of shelters, but when she landed at the YWCA in January, she said she was welcomed with open arms.

“(The YWCA) said ‘let’s push you towards something that you can thrive in.’  I took every opportunity to try and better myself in some kind of way.  Mentally, physically, spiritually and emotionally.

Since becoming a resident of the YWCA, Bunnie started to lead beading and ribbon skirt making lessons within the new facility.

The $70-million facility was funded through donors, community partners, and all levels of government.

“I saw on day one of when our women came in that they felt different about where they were and what was possible,” Coomber-Bendtsen said.

“I think that sense of hope is something that I’m already starting to see in the women that we’re serving.”

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