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Maria Hernandez

March 10, 2025

Interviewed and Written by Mercedes Riestra, Community Ambassador

My husband and I immigrated to Canada from Mexico in 2018. Like many immigrants, we decided to move to Canada to pursue better opportunities, start a family and have a safe place to call home.

I gave birth to my first child, a little girl, during the pandemic in 2020. This was a very challenging time for me as I did not have any other family members with me in Canada. With very limited language skills and the governments’ restrictions, I felt overwhelmed.

As time passed, I realized that my young daughter needed to go to school, and I was worried about her socialization, language, social skills and emotional development. After a while, I gave birth to my second daughter, and I wanted to be able to socialize, improve my English and be able to go out in public with my growing girls.

A close friend had described the benefits of the EarlyOn program to me and I knew that this was something that would provide me with the assistance I needed. I did a search online for programs close to my address where I found the EarlyOn program at SCHC and decided to go with my two daughters. I was a little bit shy at first, but I knew I was doing the right thing for my family.

I remember the warm welcome that the SCHC staff gave to me and my daughters as they explained the programs, activities and shared a monthly calendar. At that point, I knew that this was the program that would help me.

I learned so much about the different offerings of the EarlyOn as well as the various other programs at SCHC. Jennifer from the EarlyOn program connected me with the local Food Bank. At the beginning, I did not realize that this was an additional resource that I would have access to through the SCHC. Having access to free groceries once a week was very helpful with my family’s economic situation.

I registered my older daughter in the Pre-Kindergarten program, which I am very thankful for because this program helped her to prepare for kindergarten. My daughter was able to receive the basic skills that she needed for JK, and I was very proud of my daughter on her first day of school.

When I had my second daughter, the hospital staff shared additional resources with me, and I was able to take her to the Community Health Centre at the 520 Ellesmere location. I did not know that the Community Health Centre, the EarlyOn program and the Food Bank are all programs and services from the same organization. I was able to connect the dots when I saw that they shared the same logo. I am very happy that both girls are registered clients of the Health Centre and I feel very comfortable taking the girls there. There is an interpreter service available which helps me to clearly understand everything about health, as well as to ask questions regarding the well-being of my two daughters.

I would recommend SCHC and the programs offered to anyone that is looking for support and services. Being able to attend the EarlyOn program every week, even though it is a forty minute bus ride from my house, is well worth the travel time. The staff is super friendly, the environment is amicable, and I felt part of the program and community. I was able to meet new families, learn about different cultures and various types of food, and my daughters have met a lot of new friends. It is the perfect place to socialize with other parents, make friends and learn about programs and community services in Scarborough.

I highly recommend SCHC because they offer so many different programs that cover the needs of the residents in Scarborough. My experiences with EarlyOn, Food Bank and the Community Health Centre are amazing. I only have great things to say about SCHC, including a very grateful, “Thank you!!!“.