Children North Early Intervention Program Inc.

06/19/2026

We are honouring Dr. Deborah “Debbie” Gunther-Hansen, who passed away on April 13, 2026 from bacterial meningitis. We are struggling because we do not want to write about Debbie in past tense.

We keep coming back to one sentence Deb said again and again: “I was meant to do this.”
Because she was.

Deborah “Debbie” Gunther-Hansen gave 50 years to pediatric physical therapy, and she gave the North a huge part of her heart. For more than half of those years, she travelled to La Ronge to be part of the Pediatric Outreach Diagnostic Clinic with Children North, showing up for families who deserved care close to home. When that Outreach Clinic was discontinued in 2013, Deb did not stop. She took her own holidays and came anyway, helping us run our own clinic because she could not stand the idea of northern Saskatchewan kids going without.

Deb helped thousands of children. She helped parents breathe again. She helped our team grow into what we are now. She was not a “supporting” part of this clinic. She was part of the foundation. The way we work, the way we care, the standard we hold ourselves to, it all carries her fingerprints.
And it was never only her skill, even though her skill was exceptional. It was her presence. Kind. Fun. Always smiling. The person who could make a long clinic day feel lighter, and a hard conversation feel less frightening, without ever pretending it was easy.

There are people you assume will always be there, because they always have been. Deb was one of those people for us.
Tomorrow, June 20th, her family and friends will celebrate her life. We will be thinking of you, and grieving with you, and feeling grateful that we got to know her, work beside her, and learn from her.

Thank you, Deb. For the miles you travelled. For the holidays you gave up. For the thousands of northern Saskatchewan children you helped. For the way you made our staff and our clients feel cared for.
We will miss you, and we will carry you with us.

06/18/2026

🐕 Diana and Torino sit together. There's no rush, no expectation. He leans into her, she holds him steady. That exchange, that quiet connection, is where the healing happens.

Kids and adults respond to Torino because he asks nothing of them. He's just there, present, solid. When someone holds a dog who's completely settled, their nervous system shifts. Everything slows down.

06/17/2026

👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Nancy and Opi are playing together. Consultants Vanessa and Kylie are coaching their mom on how to facilitate that across their age and ability differences. One guides, one follows. One leads, one learns. They're building a rhythm together.
Siblings who learn to play across their gaps learn how to support each other, how to adapt, how to be present for someone different from themselves.

06/15/2026

Occupational therapist Louise is working with Adrian and his parents. Adrian's shy, so Louise isn't pushing him. Coaching his mom and dad on how to build trust, how to move at his pace, how to create space for him to engage when he's ready.
That's the work. Parents learning how to support their kid without pressure. When everyone understand that trust comes first, everything else follows. 👨‍👩‍👦

06/12/2026

🎨 Occupational therapist Louise and Abraham are working with Play-Doh. Louise repeats the same actions and words over and over: roll, roll, bubbles, bubbles. She's patient, consistent, waiting for Abraham to say it back. He's listening, processing, building the connection between the word and the action.

That repetition is where language development happens. Louise isn't forcing it. She's creating space for Abraham to find the words on his own.

06/11/2026

🐕 Hemi and Torino are at Pawsitive Attitude training with Jayme. These therapy dogs don't stay sharp on their own. Training is constant. Jayme's working with them, refining their responses, keeping them ready for the kids they work with.
Every session matters. A well-trained therapy dog makes the difference between a kid feeling safe and a kid feeling anxious. That's why the training never stops.

06/10/2026

💬Speech and language pathologist Barb is our new therapist. She's working with Jade, who doesn't speak yet. The foundation is actions first. More movement, more gestures, more intentional doing. Once that's solid, single words emerge: play, eat, jump, yes, no.
Barb knows rushing to words before actions are established doesn't work. She's building Jade's communication from the ground up, letting her discover that movement and sound create meaning.

06/09/2026

06/08/2026

Physiotherapist Idan is working with Kreedence on his right side weakness. Every game they play targets that side. Kreedence has to reach right, push right, move right to succeed. He doesn't think about therapy. He thinks about winning the game.

Build the work into activities Kreedence actually wants to do. His right side gets stronger because he's focused on the game, not the exercise. 🧗

06/05/2026

👩‍🏫 Ashley, a speech and language pathologist, is working with Lucy. We operate across multiple communities: Wollaston, Pinehouse, Hall Lake, Southend, Sucker River, Stanley Mission.
Remote communities don't have access to services most people take for granted. We show up because these kids deserve the same support as anyone else. That's what it takes to reach families where they are.