Aidaen's Place carries on legacy of founder's late daughter

Along a busy street in the town of Yarmouth is a purple house -- a centre for youth created to support them.

Founder and executive director Kelly Mitchell began this service as a passion project three years ago after losing her daughter Aidaen.

“We started out with a very small room. We quickly outgrew the space, and from that came Aidaen’s Place,” said Mitchell.

She and her husband noticed her daughter’s mental health decline rapidly at 11-years-old. Mitchell said Aidaen’s mental health worsened when she became dependent on medication.

Despite doing their best to help her, it did not work.

“My husband found her with foam around her mouth,” she said. “He called the paramedics and then called me and he tells me to get to the hospital right away because there’s an emergency and it’s Aidaen. That was our first overdose and it kind of just progressed from there.”

According to Mitchell, Aidaen is one of seven teens lost to suicide from the same school in just six years.

“We’ve gone through each of these youth. The same age range, all female, same schools, same sports team, and same social circles,” she said.

After noticing the lack of resources available to youth, Mitchell bought the house and painted it the colour of Aidaen’s room. Now, throughout the week, kids and teens between the ages of 11 and 17 can use Aidaen’s Place as a safe space to learn life skills and get involved in programs that give back to the community.

“The youth here have made food and distributed it to those in need, written letters to seniors, and made cat toys for the SPCA. The programs are endless,” said Mitchell.

Aidaen’s Place offers nightly suppers. Mitchell also makes breakfast and lunch boxes. They collect clothing and hang bags of supplies from their porch if they have more than they need for the community to take from.

Jay Doucettte was among the first youth to spend their days at the purple house. Doucette now volunteers her time to provide peer support to other struggling kids, in the hopes of preventing more tragedies.

In a small, closely-knit town like Yarmouth, Mitchell said, the loss of one person is felt by the entire community.

“It’s a hit for the same people, the same families, the same school, and the same kids. Our kids. Jay has lost two or three friends to suicide,” she said.

While Aidaen’s Place is 90 per cent volunteer-run, Mitchell said the community has been incredibly supportive. People often drop by with donations of clothing, food, and their time.

The love and compassion that lives inside the purple house, continues in memory of those the town has lost.