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Help Empower Youth with ConnecTeen through Rogers Birdies for Kids

Help Empower Youth with ConnecTeen through Rogers Birdies for Kids

We’re excited to share that the Rogers Birdies for Kids presented by AltaLink campaign is officially underway! This incredible initiative offers a powerful way to amplify your support for youth in our community—with your donation being matched up to 50%

When you give through Rogers Birdies for Kids, you’re supporting ConnecTeen, a free and confidential peer support service dedicated to helping youth across Calgary and Southern Alberta. Whether it’s by phone, text, chat, or email, ConnecTeen provides young people with a safe space to talk—anytime, anywhere. 

ConnecTeen’s slime workshop with PIA Calgary. Each ingredient represented a different aspect of coping, making it a fun way to explore how coping skills can help manage stress.

Our Youth Are in Crisis—But Together, We Can Help 

Every year in Canada, 1.25 million youth need mental health support—yet nearly 60% don’t get the help they need. 

Youth mental health is at risk—barriers to support and growing challenges are leaving many without the help they need.

Youth mental health has been on the decline for years. Heartbreakingly, suicide remains the second leading cause of death among young people. It’s time to change that. 

That’s where ConnecTeen comes in. 

ConnecTeen: A Lifeline for Youth

ConnecTeen supports youth aged 12 to 24, offering vital peer-to-peer and professional support for a range of concerns including: 

  • Suicide ideation
  • Parent/child or family relationships 
  • Anxiety and stress 
  • Depressed mood 
  • And much more 

In the past five years alone, youth have reached out to ConnecTeen over 21,500 times. And in 2024, 91.3% of online chat users reported feeling less distressed or more stable by the end of their session—a testament to the power of being heard and supported. 

Our Youth Program Coordinators raising awareness of ConnecTeen and the other supports available to youth.

How Youth Can Reach ConnecTeen

Youth can contact ConnecTeen 24 hours a day:

Phone: 403-264-TEEN (8336)
Text: 587-333-2724
Chat: CalgaryConnecTeen.com

Youth-to-youth support is available from 3-10pm on weeknights and 12-10pm on weekends.

Why Your Support Matters 

Every donation to ConnecTeen through Rogers Birdies for Kids not only provides critical funding—it has greater impact thanks to the matching program. With your help, we can continue to provide this essential service to youth facing serious challenges, offering them a judgment-free place to turn when they need it most. 

Give today and help us build a healthier future for youth. Your support ensures they never have to face their struggles alone. 

In the spirit of respect, reciprocity and truth, Distress Centre Calgary would like to honour and acknowledge Moh’kinsstis, and the traditional Treaty 7 territory and oral practices of the Blackfoot confederacy: Siksika, Kainai, Piikani, as well as the Îyâxe Nakoda and Tsuut’ina nations. We acknowledge that this territory is home to the Otipemisiwak Métis Government of the Métis Nation within Alberta Districts 5 and 6. Finally, we acknowledge all Nations – Indigenous and non – who live, work and play on this land, and who honour and celebrate this territory.