A New Team Member Has Appeared…

Hello Federation Members,

My name is Catherine Rana and I am the new Director of Programs and Services at The Federation. There is a lot going on in our sector and across our province and I wanted to reach out and introduce myself as one of your main points of contact at The Federation.

Prior to this role, I managed a number of government-funded community programs. In each, my teams centred around the transformative power of community collaboration. I have designed and delivered social, educational, and employment programming for youth, with 10 years specifically dedicated to supporting Indigenous young people. I was the Mentorship Program Manager at Urban Native Youth Association, the Manager of Youth Employment Programs at the YMCA of Greater Vancouver, and the Marketing and Outreach Consultant at Immigrant Services Society of BC.

I know as we as you that providing valuable front-line services to children, youth, families, and seniors is rewarding and challenging work. It is necessary work and it is work that requires a great deal of advocacy and engagement in order to be done well and made sustainable. And I believe such advocacy efforts need to be informed by the realities of those families and young people as well as the experiences of the caring, committed people delivering the services they depend on.

That belief and those values are what drew me to The Federation. You, our members, do important work. And by being a part of this organization, you are also helping to bring about long-term, important changes to the systems of care that we are a part of. You are both doing the work and making the change and I am very excited to do my part in amplifying your voices and using your ideas and expertise to make this sector stronger and more sustainable.

As a social services professional myself, I also have an inherent interest in ensuring that social services staff are well-trained and supported. That is why I am extremely pleased to be taking charge of The Federation’s ongoing Support to Practice program and helping coordinate the Community Social Services Training Fund.

And perhaps most importantly, I am very happy to be overseeing The Federation’s Transformative Reconciliation program. As a non-Indigenous person, I believe it is my responsibility to make change and demonstrate my commitment to reconciliation not just through words but through tangible, meaningful actions and I look forward to being part of this important initiative.

I am very pleased to be joining The Federation. I know the staff of our many member organizations are committed and passionate, and I am looking forward to meeting more of you over the weeks ahead.

I also want to thank The Federation staff team for making me feel so welcome in my first few weeks as I continue to get up to speed on the services, programs, and issues that we will be working on together. As you know, this is a dedicated and hard-working team and they have made me feel welcome and inspired.

Please don’t hesitate to reach out to me by phone or email. Or say hello at the next Reconciliation Book Club meeting in January.

Catherine Rana
Director of Programs and Services