For 40 years, Trico Centre for Family Wellness has been a place where people gathered as much for camaraderie and community as they did for amazing fitness programming. Community is at the core of the organization, and in partnership with the 34 South Calgary community associations represented on the Board of directors, Trico Centre tailors its programming to meet the needs of those communities around it.
“Post-pandemic in particular, for people to have a place they can go for community, belonging, connection is huge. For a lot of members, they say the programs and fitness are great, but it’s the people that keep them coming back. There’s a real sense of community with members,” says Jeff Pratt, executive director of Trico Centre.
The communities’ needs have changed over the decades, and the non-profit facility has evolved in order to continue providing the gamut of wellness services. It’s home to wellness-related tenants like Panther Sports Medicine Clinic, KUMON Math and Reading Centre, Green Door Preschool, Lifetime Smiles Dental Hygiene Clinic, Massage for Health Wellness Centre and JUGO Juice which complement the organization’s core values inherent in the programming. Trico Centre offers a licensed before-and-after school care program linked to six community schools, modern fitness centre and studios, swimming lessons, wave pool fun for the family and two full-sized arenas. There is something for every ability, mobility level and interest in Trico Centre’s comprehensive program guide.
“We have a wide variety of programming; skating and swimming lessons, day camps, and then there’s our membership base of fitness classes, and we have a lot of those,” says Miriam Crook, program manager at Trico Centre. “We also have our facility bookings so we fill in the gaps with rentals. The building is well utilized.”
It is indeed, as at any given time Trico Centre has groups renting the multi-purpose spaces for meetings or parties, while members attend the approximately 80 fitness classes per week that offer everything from music and movement for toddlers to balance and core for seniors. While the high-intensity classes challenge more fit members, the goal is for all people to get and keep moving, so the team runs modified activities like chair yoga to include anyone at any level. Inclusion is key, and Trico Centre implements inclusion facilitators for day camps to ensure all children’s needs are met and special swimming instructors who cater to children with special abilities. The team also prides itself on bringing niche programs to members that they wouldn’t find just anywhere. If members are looking for classes that target pelvic floor strength or fitness for diabetics or even bunny and goat yoga, Trico Centre is the place to be for fun and fitness.
The knowledgeable team is there to help members reach their goals, whether that is by leading exercise classes, offering encouragement or setting up a fitness plan to streamline their journey.
“We just relaunched our personal training into new programs that are more pay-as-you-need instead of buying a load of sessions,” says Amber Shevchenko, business development/marketing director for Trico Centre. “It’s now customized for each member’s personal wellness goals.”
Trico Centre facilitates wellness at any age, and a number of the robust senior membership have been part of the facility for 30 years. Many belong to the FLC Seniors Club based in the facility that meets for everything from cribbage to coffee to fitness classes. The Centre promotes vibrant seniors, active kids and healthy families in its programming, and this mandate goes beyond just fitness and exercise.
Jen Howard, Trico Centre’s child and youth director, has introduced innovative psychology-based programming called Skill Builders that focus on leadership, social skills, executive functioning, self-regulation, fine motor, gross motor and non-competitive sports. These programs help children navigate friendships, develop emotional resilience and understand and manage their feelings.
“Sport and rec is a great laboratory for life in which you can build resilience, learn skills, understand yourself better and, particularly after COVID, be able to regenerate that capacity for wellness,” says Pratt.
As Trico Centre for Family Wellness celebrates 40 years with a variety of social events and a charity golf tournament, the team is already looking ahead at ways to expand and refurbish the facility to better serve its membership community for another 40 years and counting.
11150 Bonaventure Dr SE
403.278.7542 | tricocentre.ca
