Every day is the perfect day
for a new beginning

How are your New Year’s resolutions holding up?

On the eve of January 1 this year, three out of four Australians¹ – almost 14 million people – promised themselves that things would be different in 2022...that their life would be better in some way.

The early days of any new year is the traditional season of new beginnings as we set our sights on a healthier lifestyle, better balance, making positive change, giving up bad habits and making good ones.

But the chance to change our lives isn’t limited to one fleeting day of the year or moment in time.

Any day is the perfect time to set a new direction and start on a journey of transformation that might take weeks, months and even years to complete. Thankfully, we see it all the time at Parkerville Children and Youth Care, as we help young people and their families recover from trauma, violence and abuse, and start afresh.

Parkerville Children and Youth Care has been supporting vulnerable young people for more than a century and their resilience still never ceases to amaze us.

How we travel the pathway of healing and transformation has changed over time – we’re a modern, progressive organisation today, keen to deliver innovative and responsive services for children and families working on new beginnings.

Our mission is to protect, care, advocate and promote healing for young people who have experienced trauma and challenges in life no child should experience; to support their families; and to work with the community to help make WA the safest place in the world to bring up children.

We work with more than 10,000 Western Australians through our integrated family support, early intervention and prevention, youth and foster care programs.

Families like Toby and his mum Jessie who have now moved into their first home – a milestone for anyone by even more remarkable in this case. When we first met them, Jessie had been homeless, escaping family violence and making poor choices about her health and wellbeing. Toby had been in a series of foster homes.

The transformation began – working through all the challenges of life and COVID-19 to give this family a new beginning. Jessie worked hard to become the best version of herself and a good mum.

That’s what makes any year a good year for the teams at Parkerville Children and Youth Care.

Seeing such positive change in the children with whom we work is especially exciting. Anyone who has the strength to conquer the kind of adversity they have experienced is amazing. We refer to them as our “superkids” because their courage, resilience and willingness to keep trying to engage and connect is a true “superpower”.

We know their future depends on what we do to help them to reach their potential despite their history. We help them find the resolve to conquer their fears and give them the opportunity to make a fresh start and a new beginning.

As a specialist advocate and service provider, we believe everyone deserves the opportunity to realise their potential and live their best life with the very best help we can provide.

Many people will have made New Year’s resolutions and many won’t achieve them...this time. But even the process of deciding to change can have a surprisingly positive impact on your health and happiness.

The very act of making a resolution can make you feel hopeful and optimistic. If you believe things can get better you are more motivated to take positive action. When you’re moving forward with clear direction it lifts your spirits and has an engaging effect on the people around you.

When you seek to be better, do better, or contribute more fully, you can inspire others too. Even if your resolution is focused on self-improvement, your commitment and example can have a positive effect on families, friends, colleagues and communities around you.

At Parkerville, it is our job to be the catalyst for change for young people and their families. We do that by empowering individuals to transform their lives and advocating for the change our community needs to make WA the safest place in the world to raise a child.

Sometimes making one small change, taking one small step, is all it takes to unleash the superpower within and find the strength to overcome a problem that seems overwhelming.

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¹ Based on a national survey of 1013 Australians conducted by Finder.

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