Origins of Luna: Building a Child Advocacy Centre

Over a decade ago, a mighty group of community-minded leaders came together with an ambitious vision to transform how child abuse is understood and addressed in Calgary. It was a turning point for our community that required barriers to be broken down, large systems to work together like never before, and a fearless commitment to innovation and change. The result of that shared vision and the hard work and perseverance that followed is the Luna Child and Youth Advocacy Centre!

What started as an idea of what could be possible, grew into a movement that involved the entire community stepping up to ensure children and youth who experience abuse have a safe place to be heard and believed; with a team in their corner that will rally every available resource to help them heal, and where they can have hope for a brighter future. We have evolved and grown so much since those very initial days—with RCMP joining as a partner and our Victim Support program being added in 2014, the addition of Webster and Axel in 2017, the continued growth of our partnership with Education, our rebrand in 2021, our focus on Prevention, and our leadership in building a national Research and Knowledge Centre.

On the occasion of our 10th anniversary, we gathered some of those same individuals who led the charge in bringing our Centre to life a decade ago—including Tom and Debra Mauro, Rick Hanson, Bonnie Johnston, John Dielwart, Suzanne Kendall, Gary Strother and Margaret Fullerton. Together, they reflected on why they believed a CYAC was necessary in Calgary, what it took to make it a reality, and how Luna has changed the way we support children, youth and families impacted by abuse.

Watch the video below!