A Ground-Up Success: How the Facilities Team Brought Erin’s To Life

From blueprints to the final finishing touches, our Facilities team has built more than just a place to get coffee. Here is how their dedication and teamwork created a welcoming new hub where staff and clients can gather, and meaningful employment can thrive.

Meet our Facilities team. They are the minds, and the hands, behind the scenes here at ErinoakKids. Because of them, our sites are the well-maintained, safe places our clients and families know and love. This year, we celebrate Facilities for creating new cafes!  

“We always work behind the scenes. That is our job. But this time, it’s different. People can see what we put together, and I love that,” says Karl, Facilities Maintenance Technician. “We just wanted to build something that was safe and ready for cafe staff to show up and gain meaningful work experience.” 

The Facilities team ensured that the cafe construction took place before and after our opening hours, so as to not disrupt client experience, appointments and flow of service. Each decision was made with safety in mind, together. 

“For me, it was all about being a part of a team and making something functional, a gathering space, whether its staff, clients or their families, I wanted this cafe to be something that brings everyone together,” says Ricky, Facilities Supervisor. He recalls the best part of the process being teamwork. From decision-making, brainstorming, and floor plans, it was the collaboration that made everything feel possible.

And when asked what they were most excited for, Karl, Ricky and Security and Audio-Visual Coordinator, Jomo, are also looking forward to having somewhere new to get coffee!

“Other than the convenience of having a cafe right in our sites, I am also excited for our clients to see past clients working at our cafes, giving them something to strive towards, something to look forward to. To see that meaningful employment is possible,” says Karl.

And Ricky is excited for Erin’s to be a place of gathering. Whether its staff, clients or families. “I’m just excited to see where it goes, and how the clients are going to receive our offerings. I think for us, it’s always about making the children happy, and I know when they see the treats we have, they will light up.”

Erin’s will be a special place for staff to gather as well. “Back in the day, it used to be the water cooler, and now, this will be the spot,” laughs Jomo.

Karl is happy about the positioning of the cafe. As it is right in front at all sites, Karl believes that the cafe says, “welcome in, come have a coffee, stay a while.”

With Facilities behind the structural build, bringing Erin’s to life is a partnership that has required collaboration across the organization. A dedicated Project Team has been planning for months, bringing together expertise from across the organization to develop systems that will help these cafes open and run long into the future. Staff were engaged to help name the cafe, decide on the logo design and suggest menu items, ensuring this wonderful new space will fit into the daily lives, routines, and goals of the clients and their families that we care for every day. ErinoakKids looks forward to welcoming you to Erin’s! 

Meet our first Erin's barista, Trinity-Keyanna!

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