The Estevan Public Youth Centre has brought in a new Executive Director, as the organization looks to follow up after the pandemic.

Juli Dzuba was born and raised in Estevan, and while she left the city to pursue schooling, she was soon back and has been working for non-profits in Estevan for around 8 years.

She says she's excited about the new opportunity.

"I'm really passionate about working with youth, and also I was really excited about creating a unique and inclusive space in the city of Estevan for youth to engage in," said Dzuba, "It was really exciting for me to have the opportunity to build something from the ground up."

Having lived in the city of Estevan for so long, Dzuba says she's really excited by the people that she interacts with.

"What keeps me in Estevan is the people. I'm really excited by the people I engage with and the spirit of the community. I also have a lot of family here so that kinda keeps me here as well."

'The support from the community has been great, it seems like people are really on board with having a youth centre in Estevan," said Dzuba, "It's always been seen as something that's been seen as missing in our community, so people are very excited about it and open to seeing where it goes."

She's looking to create programs for youth in Estevan, especially for those who might not be interested in existing ones such as sports.

"What I'm hoping to accomplish is to create that space for youth to be able to thrive in and to kind of explore whatever it is they want to do. I feel like sometimes if you don't play spots there's not a lot to engage in when you're a youth. My goal is to create something that they would want to participate in and just be themselves in that."

While the EPYC is still drafting plans for programs, Dzuba says she hopes they can start soon.

"I would like to start programming as soon as I can, maybe sometime in the fall, if possible."