Welcome, welcome, welcome!
Introduction
Columba 1400 has had the privilege of working through lockdown with East Ayrshire to support their work in developing a Parental Empowerment programme which has been developed, designed and delivered within East Ayrshire and not by an external provider.
If you are reading this blog, someone in your community has guided you here, I have to tell you, you are in good hands, wherever you are right now, however you might be feeling or whatever lies ahead – know this, you are not alone, good people are close to hand, ready and willing to listen, value, share and belong.
The core principles of Columba 1400 are a warmth of welcome, a warmth of hospitality and the sense of being on a shared journey. You, by being part of this programme will have the opportunity to choose the offerings which can best support you on your journey and ultimately, if you wouldn’t mind, we will ask you to giving something back to help another person on their own parental empowerment journey.
The statement below is what a parent in East Ayrshire believes and feels parental empowerment means to her. I can’t add to this, she clearly states what feeling empowered is all about.
“For me, parental empowerment means feeling that you are on the right path and achieving your goals as a parent! Achieving these goals with the help from others plays a vital part in feeling empowered. And helping others with theirs is equally as important, as this allows us to learn from each other. Sometimes we go up the wrong path and learn from that! I think parental empowerment is a feeling and is different for all of us! Allowing parents to acknowledge this is empowerment in itself!”
So, we invite you, wherever you are to join us, we need your help to empower ourselves, each other and other parents. We have made a start but this is just the beginning, we still have a middle and an end which we hope you will already feel part of?
To learn more about our hopes and dreams for the programme watch the clip below:
What does Parental Empowerment mean to me? – https://youtu.be/Y4H9G2CUR4k
Closing Comments
In closing, I have two questions for you –
What do you think?
And
How can you make Parental empowerment in East Ayrshire better?
In the words of Vaclav Havel,
It is hope, above all which gives us the strength to continually try new things!
What an honour it has been and continues to be for Columba 1400 to walk beside you, yes, you! Thank you, your family, your community and East Ayrshire.