History

On March 14, 1910, the Local Council of Women held a meeting under chairpersonship of Mrs. Rothwell in the YMCA Regina auditorium for the purpose of “considering the advisability of organizing a Young Women’s Christian Association in Regina” for the purposes of “developing girls in body, mind and soul.” 

That afternoon the decision was reached to organize a YWCA in Regina. Mrs. McKay Omand was named the provisional chairperson and the President of first YWCA Regina. She and the Local Council Executive, Miss Lane, were instructed to appoint the provisional executive. That night, this group along with Mrs. Rothwell set up a committee. 

The placing of a cornerstone was more than just checking for the structural integrity of the building. The establishment of YWCA Regina and its first centre was symbolic as the beginning of a movement. It was a symbol of the many women of Regina’s visions and dreams for the city and its community. Built during an era where many women were beginning to find and do work, it was a challenge for women moving into the city to find accommodations and places to eat without a chaperone. YWCA Regina offered a solution by providing a safe space for women to live and find community while searching for work. 

In the first year of its opening, YWCA Regina’s Travellers Aid Program was considered a successful department. YWCA Regina members met people as they entered Regina, bringing the many travelling women and children to the association, as well as helping many find their friends. Within that year, the Travellers Aid Program met 292 trains, and helped around 185 women and 54 children find a safe space during their travels. 

Not even a year after the completion of the building, YWCA Regina’s first building was partially destroyed by the Great Cyclone. Despite this being a great hit financially to YWCA Regina, while the building was being repaired, it continued to form plans to expand the building to meet changing demands of the community. 

During the first World War, YWCA Regina made incredible use of its Travellers Aid Program to help young women and families travelling alone and through the city during a perilous time. While YWCA Regina struggled along with the rest of the country, it continued to uphold its “no discrimination” policies and hired foreign women despite the criticisms levied against it. 

After the first World War, YWCA Regina continued to help soldiers, and the community find homes and accommodation. Finding work during the post-war years became a greater challenge, a challenge YWCA Regina took upon themselves. It responded by helping many young women coming into the city find work, as well as becoming a place of solace for many women finding their way. It also began teaching displaced women and immigrants English to better integrate into Canada and find work.

Like YMCA, YWCA Regina was initially recognized for its gym and pool. However, YWCA Regina’s first pool provided more than recreation and physical activity, it was symbolic of its efforts to provide spaces specifically for women’s health and show institutional dedication to the community. Despite the financing for the pool effortlessly coming from partnership within the board, YWCA Regina worked to raise the money themselves. YWCA Regina successfully raised $5,500, but over time, the cost of the pool’s creation had increased to $8,000. Despite rising costs, YWCA Regina’s Board unanimously voted to proceed with the pool construction, as they had the faith and will to pursue anything for the sake of the betterment of the community. The rest of the funding needed was raised before the pool officially opened in 1925. This allowed for the creation of the many aquatic programs that served women and children for several years to come.  

Throughout the Depression spanning the 1930’s, YWCA Regina provided for its community by providing employment services, as well as vocational training. These services drastically boosted the number of women in the workforce throughout the Depression and gave young women, and those who were struggling financially, the means to excel. To further assist families during the depression years, YWCA Regina provided swimming lessons free of cost to the youth of Regina. 

The second World War, spanning from the end of the 1930’s and into the 1940’s, brought an assortment of new challenges. YWCA Regina worked to provide housing for Canadian soldiers and their families whilst maintaining and promoting their activities and the goals of the community. As the war raged on, YWCA Regina provided a place of solace for the many affected women and children, all while providing services where it could to the Women’s Army Corporation. 

In the years following the second World War, YWCA Regina worked to house women throughout the housing crisis, especially those who were recently discharged from service following the war. The work of YWCA Regina did not end with just Canadian citizens however, their work extended to support incoming refugees and immigrants by providing English classes in association with the New Canadians and Citizenship Council. 

The Emergency Housing Committee, whose chairman was YWCA Regina’s CEO, Isabel Russel, used the YWCA Regina’s residences at 1950 Lorne Street to support incoming Hungarian refugees. This work focused not only on providing and finding further accommodation for them, but also on finding them employment. YWCA Regina found this employment search particularly important to ensure long-term success for these new Canadians. 

YWCA Regina’s synchronized swimming team, the Synchronettes, went on to win the Birks Trophy for their effort in an intercity swimming competition in 1958. Notably beating out their competition from Saskatoon 95 to 59. The contest itself took place within the YWCA Regina’s pool, a win on home territory. 

In 1959, YWCA Regina was one of seven Canadian YWCAs that participated in collecting information to provide to the United Nations and the World Service Fund whose efforts assisted women in underdeveloped countries assume a sense of responsibility and power within their own communities. This fund directly gave relief to Hungary and Jordan. 

Beginning in 1964, YWCA Regina began its Capital Campaign fundraiser to fund its new building on McIntyre Street. The campaign was led by J.B. Sangster and Don McPherson and took place over the course of six years, which by the end would come to an estimated $1,650,000 raised. 

Isabel Russell led YWCA Regina as Executive Director and CEO during many significant events from 1953 until 1971. Her presence is one that is unquestionably instrumental to the success of the YWCA Regina. Russell first started working at the YWCA in Vancouver where she worked tirelessly to provide for her community for years before she brought her excellent knowledge to Regina in 1953. Russell was a wonderful member and leader of YWCA Regina for almost 20 years where she played a key role in the building and construction of its 1940 McIntyre St. building. Not only was she an active member in the community that pushed for many new and innovative women’s programs, she also was vital in keeping the YWCA Regina and YMCA Regina as separate institutions when they were being pushed to merge in 1961. Russell gave many years to the YWCA Regina, and she did so with the same love, care, and dedication she wanted to see in the organization. In 1990, Isabel Russell passed away. 

After 59 years at the Lorne Street location, the original YWCA Regina location began to show its age. The decision was made to move into a new building at 1940 McIntyre Street. After the success of the Capital Campaign, the new building was completed allowing for the YWCA to further provide for their community. 

In 1971, YWCA Regina opened its first childcare centre that focused on preschool aged children in alignment with its priorities to provide, promote, and support children’s health and wellbeing. Programs such as the Children Who Witness Violence Program and the Big Sisters Program served as strong representations of the work that YWCA Regina did and continues to do for the youth of its community. In 1975, YWCA Regina’s childcare centres began offering educational programs to both preschool and school aged children aged four to six, a new service compared to other community children’s programs that supported children aged eight years and up. 

YWCA Regina was one of the first YWCAs in Canada to host the Women of Distinction Awards, awarding and recognizing the many incredible women of Regina for their accomplishments within the community. Since 1981, countless women in Regina have been recognized for their diverse achievements in categories such as arts and culture, health and wellness, and science and technology. YWCA Regina has always advocated for the empowerment and celebration of women and their successes, which is demonstrated in the implementation of the Women of Distinction Awards.  

In 1983, the Isabel Johnson Shelter opened, becoming a leading emergency shelter for the many women and children fleeing domestic violence in Regina. Its presence in the city of Regina created a needed safe space that offered counselling services, as well as a supported and secure place to stay.  Alongside counselling assistance, YWCA Regina also provided legal aid to give women and children the opportunity to live a violence-free life, as well as support in finding new accommodations, safety planning, and employment and education opportunities.

With the decline in users to the pool and fitness programs, YWCA Regina makes the difficult decision to close its pool. At this time, YWCA Regina makes it primary focus the development of social programs for women and girls. 

Lyda Fuller joined YWCA Regina as Executive Director in February 1991, after being encouraged by YWCA Canada due to her leadership experience at YWCA St. Thomas-Elgin. At this time, YWCA Regina was facing significant challenges, including severe financial instability, missing government reports, and an inability to meet payroll. Lyda worked tirelessly to stabilize the organization, securing new financial partnerships, relocating accounts to the Credit Union, and negotiating with the City of Regina to obtain land for a mortgage on the building. She also organized the first Western Area YWCA meeting, laying the foundation for a Peer Support System. In 1996, YWCA Canada asked her to assist YWCA Yellowknife, where she later became Executive Director, serving until her retirement in 2020. Lyda reflects on her time in Regina with pride, particularly for bringing stability to the organization and initiating conversations about the future of its facilities. Her hope for YWCA Regina is continued growth and service to the community in innovative and impactful ways. 

Following her nursing career in Regina and Ottawa, Louise spent several years as the Assistant Director of Transition House and Director of Housing for YWCA Regina. She was also the Chair of the Advisory Council for the Status of Women Office in Saskatchewan. Louise was an integral member of YWCA Regina and advocates for the women and families in our community. She touched lives with kindness, dignity, respect and so much wisdom. 

Kikinaw was renamed by popular vote of the residents that were living here at the time. Kikinaw is a Cree word meaning “our place, our home.” Since the beginning of YWCA Regina, the women’s residence has been an important and necessary aspect to the foundation of its efforts to provide safe spaces for all women, young girls, and children. While in its beginnings, YWCA Regina residences were meant to house women coming into the city to live freely while finding employment, but as the YWCA Regina evolved to meet the needs of the community, so did its housing services. Today, YWCA Regina’s residences work to not only provide safe housing, but also support for women going through any issues they may face with a non-judgmental, trauma-informed approach. 

In 2009, YWCA Regina created a new program to provide safe and affordable emergency housing and accommodations for women and children, whilst guiding them through the process. This program was called “My Aunt’s Place”, and was an addition to the already present variety of emergency housing programs YWCA Regina was already providing. This addition shows its commitment to ensuring the availability of emergency housing for woman and children is met, and to provide a more complete solution rather than a temporary one to minimize homelessness in Regina. 

YWCA Regina’s Kids in Transition Shelter (KITS) Program was renamed at ceremony in 2023 as Mekwayahtik Mawihkani Wati, which translates to ‘Beautiful Wolf Den Amongst the Trees”. During this time, it re-opened in partnership with the Ministry of Social Services to provide short-term shelter for children who have been removed from their homes. 

The pilot program Village Networks for Single Mothers was launched, and the 90-space Century Crescent Child Care Centre opened.