Where Did the Name Dragonfly Come From?

We have had many comments and questions about the name of our centre. The name came after a great deal of thought about our hopes and our ideas for the future. As you will see on our home page, dragonflies have special meaning in many places all around the world, and there are many common themes.

One of these common themes is growth, change, and transformation. Dragonflies begin their lives in the water, as they grow they start to leave the water and learn to fly. They also change colours steadily over time. The idea of change is important –we hope to help families realize positive and important changes in their lives. We want to assist youth in transitioning from their lives with their family or caregivers to “flying” with increasing independence as they get closer to adulthood. As an agency we will remember to change over time and as the needs of our community change.  

Another common theme is flexibility and adaptability. Dragonflies can change direction suddenly and with ease. Sometimes children, youth, and families, are faced with incredibly difficult situations requiring them to adapt and change, sometimes quite suddenly. Throughout our careers we have been amazed by how resilient people can be during challenging times. We will provide support to families who are doing the hard work of adapting to changes in their lives. We will hold onto the theme of the dragonfly and be flexible and adapt to the needs of our community. We believe we are demonstrating flexibility through offering an option for outreach (in-home) services.

Dragonflies represent lightness and wisdom. After persevering and adapting through difficult situations it is believed they gain wisdom and continue to fly with joy and lightness despite having experienced many dark and difficult emotions. They are stronger because of the difficult times. We absolutely believe this to be true of families and individuals, and we look forward to providing support to those who are on this journey.

Just like the dragonfly we will grow and change over time. Be sure to watch here for updates as we build relationships with our community partners and develop new services. We are looking forward to the amazing adventure ahead and hope you are too!