MP Wayne Stetski was instrumental in awarding more than $600,000 in federal assistance to create summer jobs for Kootenay- Columbia students.

The Canada Summer Jobs (CSJ) Initiative contributes annually to aid in creating jobs for students aged 15 to 30. This year the federal government provided additional funding of $242,644 earmarked for youth employment in the Kootenay-Columbia riding.

Because programs like CSJ can help bolster local economies, Stetski took an active role in distributing the funds and in allocating the additional federal assistance to ensure that jobs were created throughout the Kootenay-Columbia region.

“I assigned jobs funding for as many as 175 students in the riding, and gave particular consideration to communities that were impacted by the loss of a major employer,” commented Stetski.

The Kootenay-Columbia MP stressed that the program is also about helping our young people to acquire valuable experience and workplace skills.

According to summer student, Chelsey Weisbecker, “I was hired at the Boys and Girls Club of Cranbrook and am working at the Club’s Youth Impact Youth Centre. The experience this job offers has helped me learn interpersonal communication, leadership, organization and teamwork.  This has been more than just a job for me.”

Stetski set the priorities for the region, including support for projects in tourism, arts and culture, the environment and food security. The NDP Member of Parliament assigned grants to not -for- profit organizations, public sector employers as well as small businesses.

Lead image: Left to right:  Chelsey Weisbecker, summer student at the Youth Impact Youth Centre, MP Wayne Stetski, and Janae Yoshinaka, summer student at the YouthWise Eco Centre. Photo submitted

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