One of Red Deer’s long-standing youth outreach organizations is getting a brand update.
After 40 years of serving the community, the Red Deer Youth and Volunteer Centre (YVC) is becoming Youth HQ to better reflect the services the non-profit agency offers.
“We felt it speaks more to what we do in the community and positions us in a manner where we can respond more effectively to needs in the community as we go into the future,” said YVC Fund Development Manager John Johnston.
The new name, which was unveiled at an open house event at the Youth and Volunteer Centre on 49th Ave. on Friday afternoon, comes on the heels of a brand audit the agency undertook to gauge how to improve the services they offer.
“We’re celebrating 40 years of being in Red Deer and area and we’ve gone through a bit of an audit of the agency over the past six months and we did an agency refresh,” Johnston said.
The agency provides programs and services for youth in Red Deer through Big Brothers Big Sisters of Red Deer, the Boys and Girls Club of Red Deer and District, the 49th Street Youth Shelter and Camp Alexo. According to a press release, the YVC provides opportunities for thousands of children and youth annually to develop confidence and skills for life.
Johnston said that despite the new name, the organization will continue to provide the same services to the community that it always has, just under a new title.
“The structure of the agency will remain the same. We’ve just got a refresh, a new name that speaks more clearly to the services and it positions us in a way to respond to other youth needs in the community in the future as we go forward,” he said.
In addition to celebrating the launch of their new name, Youth HQ is also celebrating its 40 year anniversary in the community.
“It’s evolved with the community. It’s always been grassroots. We grew from the original 150 youth membership back in 1976 and we serve well over 2,000 a year now in the agency. It’s just evolved over that time but it’s maintained it’s a real grassroots approach,” Johnston said of how the agency has grown over the years.
For more information on the programs and services offered at Youth HQ or on the agency itself, visit www.youthhq.ca.
zcormier@reddeerexpress.com
