Welcome to Strive On!

A newsletter about Strive Living Society

COVID-19 Updates and Virtual Programming through Strive Centre Vancouver

Strive is aware of the risk of COVID-19 and is taking heightened precautions to prevent the spread of this virus, while protecting our employees, service recipients, and the community.

We wish to acknowledge and to extend sincere gratitude for the loyalty, commitment, and strength demonstrated by all Strive employees, volunteers, home share providers, foster parents, and our Board during this time. We also wish to extend our heartfelt sympathies to all those who have been negatively impacted and/or lost a loved one to this virus.

Strive and its teams are doing their best to adapt services, provide support, and keep everyone safe. We are gathering information from various reputable sources hour-by-hour each day and making prudent decisions for the protection of all stakeholders and the community.

Due to the current COVID-19 pandemic, many day centres and services for people with disabilities have ceased.  Therefore, participants have very limited access to daily connections, services, and/or programming, which can cause a decline in mental and physical health, as well as overall well-being.  Fortunately, modern technology will allow Strive Centre Vancouver to deliver our programs and services on virtual platforms. These platforms can be accessed by participants in their homes through the use of computers and/or smartphones. Stay tuned for updates as we launch this exciting new virtual platform and programs!

Strive is taking the following actions at present:

• Disinfecting work sites regularly and thoroughly. Employees and individuals are reminded to wash their hands often using proper techniques.
• Communicating updates to our employees and ensuring that proper safety protocol is followed. Information is derived from reputable sources.
• All meetings, interviews, and social interactions are taking place using technology. Visitors are currently prohibited, including family members, except for individuals assessed to be at the end of their life.
• Employees are reminded to practice universal and standard precautions, and stay at home when sick. Employees are expected to self-isolate and monitor for symptoms if they have traveled upon their return.
• While in-person drop- in and group programming is currently suspended, Strive Centre Vancouver is launching an exciting virtual program for all Strive individuals to utilize. These programs can be accessed by participants in their homes through the use of computers and/or smartphones.
At this time we are unable to predict how long these service changes will last, but our teams will keep everyone informed. These decisions were made with the health and safety of our employees, individuals, and the overall community in mind. Strive is doing its best to cope with the situation we are all facing collectively, while preventing the spread of the virus. We know that this is a critical time that requires decisive action in order to flatten the curve.

Strive’s Ongoing Response

Strive will continue to pay close attention to and make decisions based on the information and guidance being shared by reputable organizations, including the World Health Organization, Canadian and British Columbian government Health Officers, Fraser Health, Vancouver Coastal Health, Ministry of Children and Families, Community Living BC, and our Program Directors.

For more information for individuals and families, check out CLBC’s website on COVID-19 here. Strive will continue to update our site regularly as more updates become available.