Foundry Surrey - Stories of Care: George Passmore

Stories of Care

Meet George Passmore, Community Partner

Manager of Counselling and Addictions Services at Sources Community Resources

"A place for youth to experience meaningful belonging”

Why Foundry?

A game-changer in mental health service delivery...

“Anyone who has ever been devoted and madly in love with their kid since birth, who then sees them with their life at stake, there’s an urge that is hard to describe. It's an absolutely heartbreaking desperation when your kid is in a struggle you don't understand. It can feel like you're losing them. And then to have all these different options and not know which one makes sense for your child, it's overwhelming and confusing.”

George Passmore is a seasoned clinical counselor with over 30 years working with youth and families. He currently serves as the program manager of counseling services and substance use at Sources Community Resources.

George highlights that one of Foundry's standout features is its potential to serve as a game changer in how mental health services are organized. In the face of a mental health crisis, parents often find themselves at a loss, navigating through an overwhelming sea of options with no clear path to meeting their child's complex needs. Foundry, with its integrated, coherent service structure becomes the singular place where the multifaceted needs of young individuals can be met.

“I really see that families and youth will benefit from having an opportunity through Foundry to develop relationships that support resilience and that Foundry will have an opportunity to contribute and participate in their world.”

Reflecting on his own experiences as a parent and a counselor, George underscores the vital role that positive and validating relationships play in the critical phases of a young person's life. When disconnected from these elements, youth face significant challenges, including alienation, disconnection, struggles with self-worth, and identity crises. Foundry is more than just a service provider; it's an organizing structure for youth service providers to seamlessly integrate services in a cohesive manner.

“We want them to only have to tell their story one time and have the people behind the scenes be able to get a clear picture of what might be helpful, and for those services to be offered in a timely manner.”

Foundry provides hope and possibility. George recalls Foundry’s Executive Director vision: Imagine a future where you could be new to a community and simply ask: “Hey, where's your Foundry? That is a great vision.”

George is grateful for ...

“Can I tell you a story?"

One painful gap in the system is the transition from youth to adulthood. Some services are defined by age, and the health cap at 19 does not work. We see a lot of young people not having their needs met and struggling in their early adulthood.

I want to tell you about a young person. He’s 16 and living in the barn of his abandoned family farm. The family has disintegrated. There’s been financial strife, so they left the farm, and he's living there by himself. He can’t manage, he has no support and he’s profoundly lonely.

He knows he has a father who lives a few provinces away in BC. He doesn’t drive. He doesn’t even have a car, so he walks there from Saskatchewan. He hitchhikes a bit, and over the course of several months, he mostly walks to BC and he finds his dad, only his dad didn’t really want much to do with him.

So he couch surfs for a bit. You can imagine, there are other parts to this young person’s story that are horrendous. He has no idea what to do with his life. He has never been in a healthy relationship before and he’s completely confused with no guidance.

Somehow, he discovers some social resources and he asks for counseling.

We didn't have a general counseling service for someone like him. He most certainly would not have met the criteria for the Child and Youth Mental Health team which serves moderate to severe mental illnesses, but even if he had met criteria, there was an eight month waitlist and now he’s 18. By the time he would’ve been accepted he’d be 19 and aged out of the service. This is a true story.

I couldn’t help him through our current system, but I could help him thanks to some timely private donations. We were able to work with this young person for several months, he was able to recognize his worth, sort through what had happened to him, and develop a path to forge a life out here. It was amazing.

What if funds like this were embedded into Foundry?

And Foundry’s services are here for youth aged 12-24. This young person would’ve had access to help right away. I’m grateful for that.”

"I love that a Foundry center can offer a place centered around that stage of life and can connect youth to the resources that meet them where they're at."
~ George Passmore

Building Foundry Surrey Together

Why Surrey?

Amazing organizations doing remarkable work

As the Foundry Surrey gets closer to opening its doors after three years of intensive development, George shares his gratitude and excitement about the availability of crucial services for young people and families in the city.

"It's very tough for young people now, especially in the age of social media. There's a lot of judgment, social ostracism, and cliques. When kids are in angst, searching for their place, and to see some almost give up on themselves when met with the anxiety of new environments, unsure of whether they'll be accepted or not…It's so hard to see a young person go through that."

George sees the need in Surrey which is home to the highest percentage of children and youth in BC. Surrey. “Families have had to find their way through the city’s various services to get what they need.” He shares that youth and families found it challenging to leave their communities in search of resources, so the decision of location was made strategically.

“Being a service provider in Surrey since 2010, I've seen amazing organizations who have done remarkable work, but nothing that has brought it together in a more efficient way until now.”

“Anytime we're participating in the life of a young person, we're impacting their trajectory in a small way. Even if something moves one degree in a new direction, over time, that can be a completely different outcome, especially if these interactions add up. In a place like Foundry, there's so many opportunities for this. I think that there's a calling that most of us have as service providers to youth, we want to make that difference for them.”

The first Foundry for Surrey will open its doors in the heart of Surrey Centre, where the highest concentration of youth and families can access their services.

“I think it's amazing that PCRS looked at over 40 places before they found a space big enough, centrally located, right across from transit, making it accessible and low barrier.”

As Surrey anticipates the opening of Foundry, its presence signifies a unified effort to address the diverse needs of Surrey's youth and families, creating a more accessible, inclusive, and supportive environment for all.

“I’m excited to have Foundry Surrey actually open its doors and be able to see something available to young people and families. To see floor plans, to see the team picking color schemes and hearing the various service providers organize in the calendar of when they're going to be there… It's exciting to see the hard work that's gone into this begin to manifest, and it’s going to be here sooner than we know it.

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"I love that a Foundry center can offer a place centered around that stage of life and can connect them to the resources that meet them where they're at.”- George Passmore

"Being a service provider in Surrey since 2010, I've seen amazing organizations who have done remarkable work, but nothing that has brought it together in a more efficient way until now.”

- George Passmore

Why Foundry Surrey?

Foundry Surrey is a safe and inclusive place where young people and families find flexible, accessible, non-judgmental care, information, resources and support as life challenges arise. All under one roof, health and social services will be brought together in a single place to make it easier for young people to find care, connections and the support they need.

Foundry Surrey offers young people ages 12-24 health and wellness resources, services, and supports both online and in person. It’s a place where young people and families in Surrey can go when they have mental health or substance use concerns, physical health questions, if they are struggling with anxiety, depression or are in a life-threatening situation. It’s a place where youth can see a doctor or drop in to speak with a counsellor, and have access to a range of accessible resources without a referral, and free of charge. It’s a welcoming wellness centre designed for youth, by youth and with youth to meet their unique needs without long waitlists.

Learn more about Foundry Surrey

Donate today and help us reach our goal of opening Foundry Surrey’s doors in 2024.