Youcan Youth Services

06/12/2026

People often imagine intervention happening in difficult conversations. More often, it starts in moments like this. Because before a young person trusts you with the hard stuff, they have to trust that you'll be there for the simple stuff.

Sometimes that looks like an afternoon of bowling.

For many of the young people supported through RELENTLESS, everyday life can mean staying on guard, expecting the worst, and focusing on survival. That's why intervention isn't always about talking about what's wrong. Sometimes it's about creating opportunities for something different. A different experience. A different relationship. A different view of what's possible.

Every intervention gives a young person a chance to rewrite what today looks like. And when enough todays begin to change, so can their future. What looks like a simple game of bowling is often something much bigger: trust being built, walls coming down, and a young person being reminded they're still allowed to be a kid.

These moments matter more than they look.

Help protect what's working before it's gone. Learn more https://www.youcan.ca/relentless-campaign/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=organic_social&utm_campaign=relentless_june2026&utm_content=week2_education

06/11/2026

Before a gang offers them the feeling of belonging, someone else has to show them they already belong. In Alberta, gang recruitment can begin as young as 8 years old. Not because children are looking for gangs, but because they're looking for connection, friendship, and a place to belong.

That's what the RELENTLESS team does every day. They do the quiet work of creating opportunities for young people to build trust, find connection, and simply enjoy being kids.

Sometimes, it looks like an afternoon on the ice. One small reminder that they can be part of a group without having to prove themselves first.

Help protect what's working. https://www.youcan.ca/relentless-campaign/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=organic_social&utm_campaign=relentless_june2026&utm_content=week2_education

06/09/2026

Sometimes intervention looks like sitting beside a young person in court for a warrant they're too young to have. Sometimes it means helping them navigate a meeting with a parole officer, advocating for them, or showing up when no one else will.

But sometimes intervention looks much quieter. Sometimes it's making lunch together. Sharing a conversation, and taking a break from everything heavy they're carrying.

Moments that may seem ordinary to most people can mean everything to a young person who's spent too much time focused on survival. Because healing doesn't only happen in moments of crisis. It happens when a young person feels safe, seen, supported, and free to just be a kid.

Learn more about why interventions like this matter and how you can help protect what's working. Click the link https://www.youcan.ca/relentless-campaign/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=organic_social&utm_campaign=relentless_june2026&utm_content=week2_education

06/08/2026

Some kids are forced to make choices no child should ever have to make. The young people supported through RELENTLESS are often navigating choices around violence, instability, trauma, and circumstances that force them to grow up far too soon.

Intervention doesn't always happen in moments of crisis. More often, it happens in the quieter moments where trust is built, walls come down, and young people are reminded that they're more than the challenges they're facing.

These moments may seem small, but they matter. They create opportunities for connection, belonging, confidence, and hope. They remind young people that there are people who care, people who will show up, and people who will stay.

Because behind every crisis is still a kid.

Help protect what's working.

https://www.youcan.ca/relentless-campaign/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=organic_social&utm_campaign=relentless_june2026&utm_content=week2_education

06/04/2026

Most 12-year-olds are worried about school, sports, sleepovers, group chats, or what they’re doing after class. They are still figuring out who they are, what they love, and what growing up looks like.

But some 12-year-olds are navigating crises far too heavy for a child to carry. Violence. Trauma. Instability. Exploitation. Homelessness. Survival.

At RELENTLESS, we believe behind the crisis is still a kid. A kid who still deserves safety, trust, support, and someone willing to show up before survival becomes their whole story.

Because no young person should have to navigate the hardest moments of life alone.

Follow along throughout June as we share more about the realities youth face, why intervention matters, and why protecting trusted youth support matters for our community.

Click the link to learn more about how the RELENTLESS Program supports young people navigating crisis and why protecting trusted support matters.



https://www.youcan.ca/relentless-campaign/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=organic_social&utm_campaign=relentless_june2026&utm_content=week1_awareness

06/04/2026

Thank you to Global News for helping give a voice to the important conversations happening around youth intervention and support in our community.

Opportunities like this allow us to share why early intervention is so important and how supporting young people during difficult moments helps build a stronger, safer, and more connected community for everyone. At a time when the need for support remains high, we are grateful for the opportunity to raise awareness about the youth we serve and the impact that trusted relationships, guidance, and intervention can have on a young person's future.

Thank you to the Global News team for helping us share the urgency behind the Still a Kid campaign and the importance of protecting support that is already making a difference.

Watch the interview here: https://globalnews.ca/video/11888840/key-youcan-youth-services-program-facing-funding-shortfall/

Key YOUCAN Youth Services program facing funding shortfall | Watch News Videos Online

Watch Key YOUCAN Youth Services program facing funding shortfall Video Online, on GlobalNews.ca

06/04/2026

A heartfelt thank you to Global News for helping give a voice to the important conversations happening around youth intervention and support in our community. Opportunities like this allow us to share why early intervention is so important and how supporting young people during difficult moments helps build a stronger, safer, and more connected community for everyone. At a time when the need for support remains high, we are grateful for the opportunity to raise awareness about the youth we serve and the impact that trusted relationships, guidance, and intervention can have on a young person's future. Thank you to the Global News team for helping us share the urgency behind the Still a Kid campaign and the importance of protecting support that is already making a difference.

Watch the interview here:

Watch Key YOUCAN Youth Services program facing funding shortfall Video Online, on GlobalNews.ca

06/03/2026

What if the behaviours we judge most quickly are actually signs of survival?

Too often, we see the outcome before we understand the story. We see the anger, but not the fear behind it. We see a young person skipping school, but not the instability that led them there. We see risky behaviour or gang involvement, but not the deep need to belong. What can look like poor choices on the surface is often rooted in something much deeper: trauma, instability, fear, grief, or unmet needs.

At YOUCAN, we know many of the barriers young people face later in life, sometimes it begins long before they try to navigate unemployment. For some youth, crisis becomes normal before stability ever has the chance to. That's why early intervention matters. That is why RELENTLESS matters.

Today, that support is facing a critical funding gap. When trusted support disappears, what happens to the young people who have come to rely on it?

Click the link to learn more about the campaign.
https://www.youcan.ca/relentless-campaign/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=organic_social&utm_campaign=relentless_june2026&utm_content=week1_awareness