St. Lawrence Youth Association

10/12/2026

A little teamwork, creativity, and Thanksgiving spirit! 🥧🍂 Youth and staff at Beacon Harbour worked together to prepare homemade pies for the holiday. From start to finish, these delicious creations were made with care. Wishing everyone a wonderful Thanksgiving! 🧡

10/10/2026

On World Mental Health Day, we recognize the importance of mental health, connection, and support. 💚 Youth at our facilities participated in an awareness activity by creating and displaying ribbons, sharing a simple but powerful message: You Matter.

Together, we can help foster environments where everyone feels seen, heard, and supported.

10/08/2026

Sweet treats for a great cause! 🧁🍂

Just in time for Thanksgiving, SLYA and FACSFLA teamed up for a bake sale in support of United Way Kingston, Frontenac, Lennox & Addington! A huge thank you to all staff who contributed homemade goodies and everyone who stopped by to show their support. All proceeds from the sale will be donated to UW KFL&A to help make a difference in our community! 🧡

10/07/2026

10/05/2026

We are excited to announce the launch of Resiliency Rebuilt: An Empathy Building, Trauma-Informed Program for Youth Aggression Tolerance, made possible through funding from the Department of Justice Canada’s Youth Justice Fund.

Designed for justice-involved youth, Resiliency Rebuilt is an innovative eight-week program grounded in trauma-informed practice, cognitive behavioural approaches, empathy development, and resilience-building. The program helps youth better understand the connection between trauma, emotions, thoughts, and behaviour while developing skills in emotional regulation, perspective-taking, healthy coping, and self-awareness.

Unique to SLYA, Resiliency Rebuilt will be delivered across both custodial and community settings, helping ensure youth can access responsive, evidence-informed programming across different stages of their involvement in the youth justice system.

We are grateful to the Department of Justice Canada for supporting this initiative and investing in innovative approaches to helping young people in our communities.

09/30/2026

Today, youth at Sundance and Beacon Harbour recognized Truth and Reconciliation Day by wearing orange shirts and participating in meaningful activities focused on learning, reflection, and reconciliation.

A special thank you to our staff member, Kari, for facilitating and creating space for these important conversations.

Every Child Matters. 🧡

09/28/2026

Today, we are celebrating Msenwa Mweneake as he begins an exciting new chapter! 💙

For the past three years, Msenwa has been a valued member of the SLYA Board of Directors, bringing thoughtful leadership, insight, and a genuine commitment to the children, youth, families, and communities we serve. We are incredibly grateful for the time, perspective, and passion he has shared with SLYA.

While we are sad to see Msenwa leave our Board table, we are also incredibly excited for what comes next. Msenwa will be stepping into his new role as Executive Director of Family and Children’s Services of Frontenac, Lennox and Addington, an exciting and well-deserved next step in his leadership journey.

One of the wonderful things about working in a close-knit community is that paths have a way of continuing to cross. While Msenwa’s role with SLYA may be changing, we know our work together will continue, and we look forward to strengthening the partnership between our organizations in the years ahead.

Msenwa, thank you for believing in SLYA, for sharing your leadership with us, and for the meaningful contribution you have made over the past three years.

From all of us at SLYA, congratulations! We will miss you around the Board table, but we are so excited to see what you accomplish in this next chapter. 💙

09/25/2026

Our United Way Raffle is open! 🎉

Grab your tickets for just $5 each for your chance to win while supporting a great cause.

🏆 Grand Prize: 50% of the raffle proceeds
🎟️ 2nd Prize: Lottery tickets
🍽️ 3rd Prize: Lunch with Executive Director Amy Gibson

The remaining 50% of proceeds will support United Way Kingston, Frontenac, Lennox & Addington and the important work they do throughout our community.

📅 Tickets are available until October 15, 2026, with winners announced October 16.

To purchase your tickets, contact [email protected]

Good luck, and thank you for helping us support our community! 💜💛

09/24/2026

That’s a wrap on our 2nd annual Chili Fest! 🌶️

A huge THANK YOU to everyone who came out, enjoyed some delicious chili, and supported our United Way Kingston, Frontenac, Lennox & Addington fundraising campaign! ❤️

We’re so grateful to everyone who helped make this event a success, from those who prepared and served the chili to everyone who stopped by to show their support.

Together, we’re making a difference in our community, one bowl of chili at a time!

09/21/2026

🌶️ Friendly reminder: Chili Fest is THIS Wednesday!

Come hungry, enjoy some delicious chili with all the fixins, and support a great cause! ❤️

📅 September 23 | 11 a.m.–1 p.m.
📍 817 Division St., Kingston
💲 $10 per person

All proceeds go to United Way Kingston, Frontenac, Lennox & Addington! See you there! 🌶️