For three decades, a weekly community gathering on Wednesday afternoons has offered Squamish’s expecting and new parents a place to belong.
The Healthy Pregnancy Outreach Program, run by Sea to Sky Community Services, has been providing free drop-in support for caregivers who are pregnant or have babies up to six months old since the mid 1990s. It remains a pillar of free perinatal support in Squamish.
“It’s not always a positive experience, being pregnant,” said Ruby Bhangoo, Early Years Coordinator with Sea to Sky Community Services, who has overseen the program for the past five years. “But when you connect with other people in the same situation, you figure out you’re not the only one going through something like this.”
The program runs every Wednesday from noon to 2 p.m. and is open to caregivers, partners and siblings. Each session includes a free hot lunch, a visit from a public health nurse, and a guest speaker drawn from the local professional community. Past speakers have included physiotherapists, dental hygienists, optometrists, chiropractors, counsellors and personal trainers, all of whom volunteer their time and expertise without charge. Because Sea to Sky Community Services is a non-profit, presenters are not permitted to advertise their businesses, which Bhangoo said helps families feel welcome without pressure.
“Parents don’t feel obligated to sign up for anything or join a program,” she said. “They just get the information.”
On a typical Wednesday, between 20 and 30 families drop in throughout the session. Donated baby clothing, formula, diapers and other essentials are laid out on a table for anyone to take, and Helping Hands donates bread for parents to take as needed.
Bhangoo said one of the program’s most significant roles in Squamish is a social one. She said many residents move to the area for outdoor recreation and arrive without an established support network, leaving new parents especially vulnerable to isolation.
“This is kind of the base of where they’ll meet friends who turn into family,” she said. “We’ve had parents start their own Facebook groups to go walking together. It becomes a gateway to feeling part of the community.”
The program is funded through the Public Health Agency of Canada, but Bhangoo said federal funding alone is not enough to keep it going long-term, and additional fundraising is ongoing. The funding has not increased much in the past decade, according to Bhangoo, and grocery costs have climbed sharply. The program previously ran two days a week with two sessions per day, but cuts brought it down to its current single weekly session.
“The cost has changed a lot and the funding hasn’t,” Bhangoo said. “We still make it work, but it very much comes down to nickel and diming.”
The program also distributes coupons through a provincial healthy eating initiative that supports the local farmers market. Due to limited supply, spots are allocated by lottery.
Bhangoo, who has worked with Sea to Sky Community Services for 24 years, said she wants more people in Squamish to know about the program and hopes increased awareness could eventually help secure more stable funding.
“We always have families coming in,” she said. “We would offer this more if we could.”
Families interested in attending the Healthy Pregnancy Outreach Program can drop in any Wednesday from noon to 2 p.m. at the Sea to Sky Community Services group room in Squamish. No registration is required.
