The Joe’s & Josie’s Garage project, with support from the Minister of Canadian Heritage, seeks to assist and support aboriginal youth in creating opportunities and experiences that they themselves have a direct involvement in so that it will create positive growth and change for themselves. This involves learning and understanding about leadership through hands on experiences. The Joe’s & Josie’s Garage project approach seeks to genuinely engage youth by affording them the opportunity to develop their own project and participate in their community.
The focus of the project is to provide male and female youth young the opportunity to gain a greater awareness of themselves and their culture through activities and workshops, community events, guest speakers, and consistent contact with the project Advisors, Elder and Mentors.
EGADZ Youth Centre has utilized funding from the Department of Canadian Heritage since 1999 and the Joe’s & Josie’s Garage project has proven to be very successful for the young participants. Through implementing a methodology of exposing the youth to a culturally focused combination of fun activities, events, and workshops that seek to address a number of issues and factors that are most often negative in nature, they can overcome these issues through their direct participation. This in turn offers the youth valuable tools that they can effectively utilize to address their individual issues and needs.
The Joe’s & Josie’s Garage project seeks to assist and support aboriginal youth in creating opportunities and experiences that they themselves have a direct involvement in so that it will create positive growth and change for themselves. This involves learning and understanding about leadership through hands on experiences. The Joe’s & Josie’s Garage project approach seeks to genuinely engage youth by affording them the opportunity to develop their own project and participate in their community. The Joe’s & Josie’s Garage project has served hundreds of “at risk “male and female youth aged 12-19 years. The focus of the project is to provide male and female youth the opportunity to gain a greater awareness of themselves and their culture through activities and workshops, community events, guest speakers, and consistent contact with the project Advisors, Elder and Mentors. The Joe’s & Josie’s Garage project facilitates both a male group and a female group allowing for each to focus on their own gender specific issues, explore and experience new opportunities and obtain personal goals. There are activities for both groups to participate in together as part of creating healthy gender relations as well. The groups are organized and the activities chosen by the youth participants with the assistance of the project advisors and Elder that reflect the issues and interests of the youth who are participating.
