BC Council for Families

Celebrating treasured family moments through stories during Canada's National Family Week

Vancouver, BC, October 1, 2010 -- Canada’s National Family Week is all about bringing families together. This year, National Family Week will be celebrated October 4 – 10, 2010. It’s a great opportunity for people all across Canada to take time out to remember the many benefits of being part of a family. It’s a chance to celebrate our strengths and successes, and an opportunity to remind us all that families matter.

National Family Week’s focus in 2010 is on "Families Connecting through Stories". So take time during this week to celebrate the joys of reading and storytelling, and rediscover the spirit of family. It’s also a great time to stop and think about why families matter and what we can do to improve the lives of all families in BC.

This year the BC Council for Families is encouraging everyone in BC to go one step further, and to write about what family means to them. During National Family Week, the provincial family support and advocacy organization will launch the first annual Family Writes online short story contest, challenging kids and grownups to write a story about a memorable moment in their family life. All the entries will be posted on the contest website, and winners will receive free copies of the Family Writes Storybook -- an illustrated volume of the collected stories. The contest closes December 31, 2010 and contest winners will be announced on January 27, 2011 – National Family Literacy Day

As Director of Communications Marilee Peters notes, “Families in BC today are facing a whole variety of challenges: there are grandparents raising grandchildren; parents working long hours and struggling to find affordable childcare; families trying to cope with unemployment and debt; and dealing with services that often seem to focus on the needs of individuals rather than on the family as a whole. National Family Week is a time to highlight some of those struggles, but also the successes of families – the love and support that families provide their members, the daily triumphs over challenges, and the fun and laughter that families bring into our lives. The Family Writes short story contest will help us to profile what’s going on today in BC families.”

Says Peters, “National Family Week is a wonderful opportunity to highlight family related issues. The Family Writes short story contest is also a great way to encourage families to take the time to do something special together.”

Beginning this October 4 until December 31, celebrate what being part of family and community in Canada means to us all by sharing the stories of your family's most heartwarming, hilarious or magical moments. Find out more about the Family Writes Short Story Contest online at www.bccf.ca.

About the BC Council for Families
The BC Council for Families is a non-profit, non-governmental organization that is a leader in family life education. Committed to strengthening families and family-serving professionals in BC, the Council provides research and resources on family issues, including practical, affordably priced publications on diverse family topics. Through its training, support and professional development programs for family service workers the Council ensures that families throughout BC can continue to access award-winning parenting programs such as Nobody’s Perfect Parenting, My Tween and Me, and Parent-Child Mother Goose.

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For further information:

Marilee Peters


Director, Communications


BC Council for Families


Tel.: 604-678-8884, ext. 234


marileep@bccf.ca