Taylor Howell completed Mohawk College’s Social Service Work final year placement at Banyan Community Services with the Self-Understanding and Regulating Emotions program (SURE).  This is Taylor’s story.

“Throughout my time, here at this agency I have been able to accomplish goals I never even thought possible. After only a short time, here I was able to work with the SURE team to connect with the Eva Rothwell center located in central Hamilton. Eva Rothwell was a center I attended as a youth and a place I have built personal connections with. I completed community service hours for secondary school at Eva Rothwell, volunteered during events for the community, and met one of my biggest mentors in life, which has allowed me many opportunities over the years to engage with my community, and give back my time and energy to a place that once served me.

My plan for the future is to see the SURE program become an important aspect of the Eva Rothwell community; I would be delighted to know I was a contributing factor to bringing such a beneficial community service to the barrier-ridden communities of Hamilton’s core. I know these communities would strive with the support of services that Banyan offers, and I have made it my goal to bridge the gap between accessible services and those most in need of the care and support Banyan offers service users.

With the help of the SURE Program at Banyan I was able to connect with my mentor at Eva Rothwell and organize the facilitation of bringing SURE to Hamilton’s core, this was a beyond accomplishing and proud moment in my life. I took a moment after to reflect on my journey thus far, I was able to see how far I have come and the path I plan to take in the future. I started my life with hardship, barriers, and challenges; I had to prove to not only myself, but also those around me, that I was strong-willed, brave, and courageous enough to accomplish big things. At this point in my life, I feel those big things coming and I am excited to see what life has in store for me. I believe being placed at Banyan for my yearlong placement and having the support from the amazing team I work alongside, allowed me the opportunity to succeed. I have been shown tremendous encouragement and have been given valuable advice and guidance.

This learning opportunity will be something I am deeply grateful and proud of, I could not have done this without the help of my team members, and I hope as a team we can continue to do great things. Truly, a full circle experience!”.