Mission Statement iHuman's mission is to work with traumatized youth who exhibit high-risk lifestyles. We promote their reintegration into the community through social support, engagement and outreach programs involving crisis intervention, arts mentorship and life skills development.
i make art art makes me
iHuman storybook
Through iHuman, youth are finding their own identity, becoming more empowered, and creating their own compelling future.
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iHuman never gives up on anyone home life isn’t so good
Melissa iHuman changing faces no discrimination Back to the basics Change our pace All races we embrace Arts and music We use what we got, strong shoulders we’ve fought iHuman got support what we hope for; the youth soar No holding back Give iHuman a clap Support is our moto If you wanna quit the bottle We on full throttle We are young role models (uh huh) 3
got offered a “job” on the way home from school...
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Multiple Challenges – Dysfunctional Family: Abuse/Neglect – Gangs / Life on the Streets – Illiteracy – Drugs / Addictions – Mental Health Issues – Poverty & Homelessness – Criminality & Incarceration – Poverty, FAS Children
Feel no sense of self-worth.They have nothing to hope for – hope for a stable and happy life has been taken away from them.
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“We are young people who range in age from 12 to 24. Many of us have lived in group homes, foster care, or on the streets. We’re considered youth at risk because we’ve had trouble with the law, and we haven’t done all that well with staying in one place. We all have drug or alcohol problems, and some of us are struggling with being abused, or having to battle with problems such as Attention Deficit Disorder. We all want the best, and we’re trying to make that happen. That’s where iHuman comes in. They have this cool place where we can work on making our dreams come true.” an iHuman youth
TRAuMaTIZeD YoUTH iHuman – We never turn a youth down.
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ONE STEP AT A TIME
Most of the youth that come to iHuman Youth Society have had to learn the hard way how to survive on the streets of Edmonton. They are defensive, angry, and in most cases not thinking very clearly (usually due to drugs). Our clientele consists of traumatized youth with drug addiction or mental health issues who are working or living on the streets in Edmonton. The life of traumatized youth is rough and many struggle to survive dysfunctional – often cruelly abusive families. They are ignored or abandoned by those entrusted with their care and they live in a dangerous world where violence against them is an everyday fact of life, where health care, education and opportunity are distant dreams, not accessible ‘social services’.
iHuman takes one step at a time with these kids, helping them tend to their basic needs of clothing, food, and shelter first. From there, trust starts to build. In essence, iHuman provides a safe haven and creative tools to help Edmonton high-risk youth heal and grow.
WHAT IS HOME?
Edmonton’s high-risk youth come to iHuman through a number of agencies, prisons, programs, and other referrals, as well as through iHuman’s outreach workers.
IS IT BETTER TO LIVE HERE? OR ON THE STREET?
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when all is lost.. creativity comes to the rescue.
Be a hero to your creativity offers an empowering call to action to youth who have seemingly lost everything. There is one thing you cannot take way from youth – their creativity, a tool that can empower disenfranchised youth with belief in themselves and the ability to contribute back to the community. By honoring and encouraging the unique voice of each youth – we create the potential for them to build trust and pathways that will lead them to a more positive future.
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Deejay Honestly we mighta lost property but my raw spirit can never be robbed from me all of us prodigies living a life a hip-hop Cause it means alot to me More than just a hobby It's my daily vent Just like sustenance As I grab that pen and i represent Ihuman my family my home where we make Music that resonates a sense of hope
Donovan There’s more to this music It’s as easy as left from right I use a pen and pad, in lower class Like planes but afraid of heights Everyday’s the same I might just go deranged I sacrificed My time to mics, my rhyme indicts My sight, i strive to write. Engraved in my mind is the night a break in the place has made a price worth more than items, no wear but fighting the rage to blame and fight. I guess it’s darkest before dawn and every shadow comes to light. iHuman is more than just a building It’s a place i live my life 15
Find the Love – Brandi What you know about being Native, what you know about where we came from, what you know about the discrimination, we need to lose the hate we have towards the nation, if only it didn't have to be this way, but its not like the olden days, nothings gonna be the same, too many things in this world have changed, too many people on the streets, too many gangstas feel this need to carry heat, we need to come together for our peoples lives to get better, forget the beef, think about the kids who need their families, I know that the natives were cheated but lets come together and prove we weren't defeated, we can make the circle complete if we get on our feet for the world to see.. its not about the colors its not about the guns, its not about the alcohol it’s not about the drugs, we need to drop the hate and just find the love x2 Do you remember the days when you could call your best friend and you could talk for hours like there was no end, but then as you grew and blended into different sections things got so messed up and you ruined a friendship that you thought was endless, and then with no intentions of even trying to mend it though, fuck the beef, you gotta let it go, there’s too much hate in the world, everybody just spread the love, and mend the trust,
maybe I'm just bending my luck, in hoping for a better world for my little girls yet its such a bitter world, and i'm defending my hearts and souls, which won't be ripped or torn, i'm going through the door to change my ways and start the war, and fight for what I believe in, if you could see what I've been seeing, which is too many Natives being killed and bleeding, too many smoking shit and doing needles, we’re holding ourselves from our freedom, were creating the hate, and paving the way, that the next generation's gonna take we all need to help make a change, it shouldn't even be debatable, everyone has a story that's somehow relatable, we gotta take fate into our hands and make it ours, take whats ours, its time to take control, with everyone together there isn't a way we couldn't make the goal It’s not about the colors, it’s not about the guns, it’s not about the alcohol its not about the drugs, we need to drop the hate, and just find the love x2 Find the love... yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah, find the love... heres what i'm saying
N A T I V E yeah you know what it be, what i'm reppin be the cree....
N A T I V E It’s not about the colors its not about the guns, it’s not about the alcohol its not about the drugs we need to drop the hate and just find love....
the love Brandi
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Chekm8 iHuman is improving me and hip hop has given me a reason To get up in the morning and keep on breathing And keep up my chin no matter the season And even if i have these diminishing feelings i just grab my pen my pad and i hit an instrumental i hope that this track will help you to remember that ihuman and youth will always stay together
Enoch Everyone’s thoughts are so deep, Their not playing around When it comes to their music Man it’s way beyond sound Now the theft’s part of history Mystery won’t solve But that’s cool with these youth They won’t lose their resolve iHuman took a hit but we a family Steadily rose up, still spittin to the beat Yea we’re hurt but we’re not beaten Got us stressed but we’re not sweating Got more love and that’s the outcome (shoutout) Help out if you can Koncept Using incredible precision The people wanna listen Through all entities and legacies Doing their right decisions Cause I only 2 step and make People get up and dance We collaborate with hip hop we don’t mess with no trance We enhance with impeccable force Before i remorse Cause I’m on a track with no chorus hitting the source Blowing exploding corroding some C4 Right through your stainless steel door We got the population hitting the floor
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Optimism. Action. Change. By helping others we also help ourselves – the result being a safer, caring and productive society. The arts can contribute to neighbourhood renewal and make a positive difference to health, crime, employment and education in deprived communities such as our inner city. They also play a vital role in developing an individual’s potential and self-confidence and help to build positive links within and between communities in Edmonton.
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Trust Compass: Balanced Program
Engagement
Authenticity
Creativity
Caring
of Services
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Kara We’re gonna keep it real We choose nothing but to heal Cause we are the youth And we know nothing but the truth People saying to run and hide But we choose to testify Against this theft We stand together and show no less We gotta keep a pace Show we’re better in this race WE’re in and outta music But we prefer not to lose it Here’s iHuman where we make more creative music
Steph Slow it down; IHUMAN What's up uh uh I wanna tell u about when I was a shorty But then I’d be telling u my whole life story I wanna thank u for sitting here listening Cause if u weren't here if be sitting up in prison Rough life's but we all bounced back Ihuman family now that's a fact From wrong to right using my street knowledge There's things I know u don’t learn in college And what; Bring it back
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Need for a permanent home It will be a place where marginalized youth feel at home. A place that will support traumatized young people to rebuild trust
The iHuman Youth Society generates positive social change and re-integrates marginalized youth into the mainstream community by engaging 12 to 24 year olds who exhibit high risk behaviours in arts, creativity and social support activities. Our innovative, holistic programs reach over 500 of Edmonton’s most vulnerable children every year. iHuman received charitable status in 1997 and has been actively helping Edmonton youth ever since. After years of bouncing around a series of rented, loaned and borrowed facilities, which severely hampered programming and our ability to stay engaged with the youth, iHuman purchased a warehouse in Edmonton’s rapidly re-developing downtown east side in April 2012. We aim to create a permanent home and bring stability to our work with our clients. The location and facility are ideally suited for our clientele and programming. Our project is timely as it recognizes the fact that Edmonton’s vulnerable youth population is projected to continue to grow in future years. The "a Home for Youth, a Place for Art" project will support the substantial refurbishments the building requires to allow for: multi-arts programming; crucial support services; store-front retail space for iHuman products and offices. The renovation will also make space for other community agencies to encourage deeper collaboration with iHuman. iHuman engages, embraces the authentic, cares, develops trust, uses creativity to beautify, encourages trust and hope – all strengthening Edmonton’s human capacity. iHuman is presently at maximum capacity levels and working in less than satisfactory premises. iHuman needs to increase its facility and program size to accommodate the expanded client group. Establishing a permanent home now will ensure an adequate ability and capacity to grow with an expanded client base. The new iHuman facility is envisioned as being a safe and welcoming place, filled with vibrant and dynamic activities and creative energy. It will be a place where marginalized youth feel at home. A place that will support traumatized young people to rebuild trust, align with existing support services, plan and implement healthy strategies and develop life and employment skills. It will be a non-threatening and positive conduit to the larger Edmonton community. The benefit of having a permanent facility will provide easy and stable access to iHuman’s youth clients, its volunteers and its community partners. At present iHuman does not have suitable space for community workshops, board meetings, nor partnership sessions. The renovated facility will become a hub for the coordination of services needed by the youth. For example, Justice Canada has recently approved a multi-year grant for a partnership program with iHuman to operate a mental health clinic for young offenders within our premise.
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The urgent and specialized needs of youth who exhibit high-risk behaviours and the negative effect on safety in our communities if we don’t address their needs, strongly evidence the need for a permanent iHuman facility. The iHuman Youth Society has a long history of having temporary spaces from which to offer programs and services. We have been forced to move three times in the last five years. The buildings that we were using have been torn down for redevelopment leaving us scrambling for alternative accommodation. Every move is a negative disruption to our client base, exhausting for our staff and uses valuable Society resources in refits and moving costs. In a social service field that is highly demanding and stressful, the continual shifting of home base is demoralizing and diverts precious energy and talent.
A place where our most vulnerable and alienated youth will gravitate, feel safe and respected, and begin their journey to a healthy lifestyle and towards becoming contributing community members.
ournewhome
ournewhome –
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500+ Vulnerable Youth got a New Home! where creativity becomes a path that can lead to so many positive things. Modern Day Urban Barn Raising. Over 700 Volunteers pitched in! More than 125 Companies stepped up and participated. We Renovated a 22,000 sq/ft Facility top to bottom. $3.5+ Million Donated services/supplies. The Stability of our New Permanent Home will allow us to help more traumatized youth. iHuman Saves Taxpayers millions of dollars/year.
communitybuildingheroes We did it together! The entire construction community did something radical for positive change by helping in the design and construction of our new home in the Quarters. Over 125 companies stepped up! Kasian Architecture, PCL, Stuart Olsen and Clark Builders took the lead and guided the process. And what a process! 100’s of companies, employees and volunteers invested time, energy, money and heart into creating a truly outstanding studio facility for the most vulnerable youth in Edmonton.
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www.heroesneedapply.org
iHuman never gives up on anyone We never turn a youth down
www.ihuman.org Catherine Broomfield, Executive Director 780.421.8811 studio 780.920.1517 direct catherine@ihuman.org Sandra Bromley, Co-Founder iHuman 780.433.5086 587.921.4074 direct sbromley@shaw.ca Steven Csorba Brand Empowerment Coach 780.916.4327 direct steven@ihuman.org
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