FREDERICTON, New Brunswick, June 05, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Young people leaving foster care in New Brunswick can stay connected with their vital support networks though a new program offered by TELUS and Children’s Aid Foundation of Canada. The TELUS Mobility for Good™ program provides youth transitioning from care with access to a free smartphone and fully subsidized plan from TELUS for two years. The program has the potential to help youth in New Brunswick stay connected with friends, potential employers and peers, helping to prevent social isolation during a vulnerable stage of their lives as they transition to independent living. Youth transitioning or who have already transitioned from care aged 19 to 26 can apply for the program through Children’s Aid Foundation of Canada by visiting www.cafdn.org/for-youth/telus-mobility-good/.
“Without the support of permanent families, youth transitioning out of care are on their own and a smartphone is critical to helping them achieve independence,” says Valerie McMurtry, President and CEO, Children’s Aid Foundation of Canada, the country’s leading charity dedicated to improving the lives of children and youth growing up in the child welfare system. “We are working together with TELUS to meet an urgent need for our most vulnerable young people that will enable them to search for somewhere to live, look for job opportunities and stay in touch with friends and vital support networks.”
Each year thousands of youth, as young as 18, age out of Canada’s child welfare system, and are no longer eligible for the type of support they have been receiving while in care. They are often underprepared to transition to independent life and do not have the support of permanent families to help them get on their feet. Without the proper resources available, many young people leaving care find the transition to independence difficult to navigate.
“The expansion of our Mobility for Good program into New Brunswick reflects TELUS’ long-standing commitment to leveraging our world-leading technology to make a meaningful difference in the lives of our fellow Canadians,” said Darren Entwistle, TELUS’ President and Chief Executive Officer. “Through TELUS Mobility for Good, and in collaboration with Children’s Aid Foundation of Canada, we are empowering vulnerable youth with a vital lifeline to the tools needed to stay in touch with social workers offering support; contact prospective employers, post-secondary institutions and healthcare providers; access educational mobile apps and websites; and remain connected with friends through their social networks. We will not rest until every young Canadian in foster care is able to begin their independent life feeling safer, more confident and connected, and better prepared for their future.”
The TELUS Mobility for Good program, first launched in British Columbia in 2017, followed by Quebec and Ontario last year, and most recently Manitoba, provides youth transitioning from care with a smartphone and TELUS mobile plan at $0 per month, including unlimited nationwide talk and text and up to 3GB of monthly data usage. While TELUS is providing the service to youth for free, the bills will appear in the youth’s name to help them build positive credit and gain the skills required to manage their finances in the future. TELUS Mobility for Good in New Brunswick is part of a broader national program that will expand to more provinces across Canada.
For more information on the TELUS Mobility for Good Program in New Brunswick or to apply, please visit: www.cafdn.org/for-youth/telus-mobility-good/. For more information on TELUS’ other giving initiatives, please visit telus.com/community.
About Children’s Aid Foundation of Canada
Children’s Aid Foundation of Canada is our country's leading charity dedicated to improving the lives of children and youth growing up in the child welfare system. We raise and grant funds, and deliver a wide range of high-impact programs and services in partnership with 77 child- and youth-serving agencies across the country that support more than 22,700 vulnerable young people annually. Stand Up for Kids is our national campaign for child welfare, which aims to change the futures of Canada’s most at-risk kids – those who have experienced abuse and neglect. We know that by helping these young people to overcome their trauma and break the cycle for future generations, they gain the strength and resilience to create a lifetime of their own unstoppable successes.
About TELUS
TELUS (TSX: T, NYSE: TU) is one of Canada’s largest telecommunications companies, with $14.5 billion of annual revenue and 14.0 million subscriber connections, including 9.7 million wireless subscribers, 1.9 million Internet subscribers, 1.2 million residential voice and 1.1 million TELUS TV customers. TELUS provides a wide range of communications products and services, including wireless, data, Internet protocol (IP), voice, television, entertainment, video and home and business security. TELUS is also Canada's largest healthcare IT provider, and TELUS International delivers business process solutions around the globe.
In support of our philosophy to give where we live, TELUS, our team members and retirees have contributed over $690 million to charitable and not-for-profit organizations and volunteered more than 1.3 million days of service to local communities since 2000. Created in 2005 by President and CEO Darren Entwistle, TELUS’ 13 Canadian community boards and five International boards have led the Company’s support of grassroots charities and have contributed $72 million in support of 7,000 local charitable projects, enriching the lives of more than 2 million children and youth, annually. TELUS was honoured to be named the most outstanding philanthropic corporation globally for 2010 by the Association of Fundraising Professionals, becoming the first Canadian company to receive this prestigious international recognition.
For more information about TELUS, please visit telus.com.
For media inquiries:
Lisa Lipkin
Lisa Lipkin Communications for Children’s Aid Foundation of Canada
lisa.lipkin@llpr.ca
416-988-4189
Donna Ramirez
TELUS Public Relations
donna.ramirez@telus.com
416-220-8245
