Youth partnership with a local non-profit is opening doors for those with disabilities one button push at a time

A life-changing project between the Youth Advisory Committee and ECHO Disability Services

has people smiling from ear to ear thanks to the push of a button. Earlier in 2023, Emma

Harper, the Youth Advisory Committee’s director, brought an opportunity to the committee. It

was a grant called the Enabling Accessibility Fund from Employment and Social Development

Canada, which featured a youth innovation component, encouraging youth to find accessibility

barriers in their communities.

Lucas Boudreau, who is in his fourth year on the committee, raised his hand and offered to be

the one to apply for the grant and get the ball rolling. “She needed one youth from the

committee to apply for this grant, and I volunteered. She helped me reach out to businesses in

the community, and that’s how I found Louise,” explained Boudreau.

Louise Meier, Executive Director of ECHO Disability Services, and Boudreau began working

closely together on what the project could be. “He and I sat down and kicked around some

ideas, and Lucas came up with the idea of the buttons, and that is a real accessibility issue for a

building that houses people with disabilities. We walked around, and he was right. We didn’t

have any buttons for our doors to keep them open,” explained Meier.

Boudreau said it was something he noticed right away. “When you think of something that helps

people with disabilities, you think of handicap buttons, and I noticed when I was coming in the

door that there weren’t any.” So, off they went, writing the grant and explaining the project they

wanted to undertake with grant funding. The pair hit send in early October of 2023, and on

February 1 of this year, they got the news they were hoping for. The grant was given two

thumbs up.

“We were fortunate to get nine thousand dollars to put the buttons on the doors of our building.

A couple of weeks ago, the hardware finally came in, and the fellow from Crystal Glass in Edson

came up. Between them and the electrician, the buttons are now in,” explained Meier.

When asked what happened the first day she came to the office and saw the buttons ready to

go, Meier said she didn’t think twice. “Did I hit them? Oh yes, I did! Then I invited Lucas to come

down to push the buttons, too. We videotaped it, and it was awesome,” laughed Meier.

“They are used every day. It doesn’t matter if it’s the guy in the wheelchair, the gal with the cane

or a staff member with a load of whatever in their arms. They just hit the button and open the

door. It’s awesome. It was a huge win-win. Huge,” she added. “It’s all thanks to Lucas. It was

absolutely his project. I just did a little bit of writing, which is easy for me. It’s been great working

with him. It really has been. It’s like I found a new friend! I see him at the Fresh Community

Market every Saturday morning and say hello, and we talk about the grant, it’s awesome,”

smiled Meier.

Buttons might not be the most exciting thing for a sixteen-year-old, but Boudreau said the

impact is. “It’s hard to be excited about buttons because it’s just a handicap button, but when

you think about how many lives it will change; it really makes me happy. I’m so fortunate to have

this opportunity to help better the community. It was a fun project that I got to do, like a pet

project almost. It was great.”

Members of the Youth Advisory Committee are Town Council-appointed following an application

process, which is now open. Boudreau said he really likes being on it. “You get connected with a

lot of volunteer opportunities. We do the Night at the North Pole, Trade Fair and those kinds of

events, and you get to meet lots of wonderful people. We meet as a committee once a month

and talk about stuff on the agenda and organize small events around town.”

For Meier, the committee is an asset. “I think that the Youth Advisory Committee has a huge

benefit in bridging the gap between the youth and what is good about this community, and it’s

really nice to see.” She added that working with Boudreau and applying for the grant with him

was a great experience. “Working with this young man was exceptional. For me, it gave me faith

in the youth in our country, especially those that are so engaged in their community.”

As for the ECHO’s clients, Meier said they are happy with the upgrade. “Oh, they are happy. It’s

great, especially the young man in the wheelchair. He just pushes the button and wheels himself

in. It has been a huge asset to our building.”

ECHO, a charitable non-profit society which provides support services to those with disabilities,

enhancing their quality of life, is what Meier calls a “niche” in the community. “This is a bit of a

marginalized population. They are well accepted in the community, but we’ve done a lot of work

to do that. This project says that we’re there and a part of this community, and people recognize

that we need to be part of it. It’s been a great project, and I love seeing it come to fruition,” said

Meier. “Thank you, Lucas.”