Story Highlights
- Rayna Critchley was once a youth living in rural Lanark County who faced many barriers to identifying as queer and pansexual.
- Now, as the Executive Director at the Lanark Highlands Youth Centre, she is one of many folks across Lanark County who helped Nicole Croteau of Big Brothers Big Sisters craft an online toolkit that supports 2SLGBTQIA+ youth and the people around them.
- The toolkit is called Reigniting Our Potential, and it’s powered by United Way East Ontario.
- It’s just one of the many ways in which we are working to foster more inclusive communities across our region.
Being a young, 2SLGBTQIA+ person in Lanark County, Rayna understands firsthand the challenges that youth and families in rural communities face when seeking resources.
"I learned at a young age that you don't really come out once, you come out for the rest of your life. And in a rural setting that can be challenging because you don't really know how it's going to be perceived."
Youth and families in Lanark County are often isolated from many essential resources. Inclusive programs for 2SLGBTQ+ youth have existed for some time in the county, but the long distances to reach them and a lack of public transportation leave many unable to access in-person services.
About a decade ago, Rayna started volunteering at the Lanark Highlands Youth Centre to help other young folks who faced the same barriers she did. She soon found herself working for the centre and all these years later she’s taken on the role of Executive Director.
Rayna Critchley, Executive Director of Lanark Highlands Youth Centre
Rayna was overjoyed when Nicole Croteau, Project Outreach Coordinator at Big Brothers Big Sisters of Lanark County, approached her team with the idea of creating an online 2SLGBTQIA+ resource guide and toolkit tailored for youth, families, social service providers and educators in Lanark County.
“I remember being super excited that this was happening,” Rayna exclaimed. “We were like, please come over and we’ll talk to you!”
Reigniting Our Potential is born
“Resources like this open doors in rural communities and help to amplify voices, fight disinformation, provide access and increase awareness making sure we can support youth moving forward.”
Reigniting Our Potential was developed by Big Brothers Big Sisters Lanark County and Queer Connection Lanark and was powered by United Way East Ontario through the federal government’s Community Service’s Recovery Fund. It serves as a central online hub for 2SLGBTQIA+ youth, as well as families, social service providers and educators who want to learn more about how they can be better allies.
In building Reigniting Our Potential, Nicole says she met with young people and basically anyone in positions of authority who work with youth, such as Rayna, to find out exactly what kind of 2SLGBTQIA+ resources were missing in Lanark County.
"I wish [after coming out] I had an adult in my life who could have provided me with more guidance and that my friend group and family wouldn't have had to figure things out so independently."
Using the toolkit, community members can find information on coming out, accessing care and supporting diversity. There’s also an extensive 2SLGBTQIA+ events calendar included on the website.
“Every day we’re making strides to improve our community, and the United Way has supported that 100%.”
Fostering inclusivity in every community, no matter how small
“When navigating rural communities, it can be hard to see yourself in others,” explains Nicole. “Having spaces specific to your municipality and seeing there are people like you, youth like you, peers like you is a sense of comfort.”
United Way East Ontario is committed to working with partners across our region to support 2SLGBTQIA+ communities in meeting their diverse needs.
We believe our identities should not determine whether we are healthy and safe. Everyone, especially youth, needs spaces where they are comfortable asking questions about themselves and where they can be the best version of themselves.
“Queer youth aren’t going anywhere. We need to build resources and build ways to preserve our community and the people who contribute to our community,”
