From its very inception in 1982 by the Canadian Unity Council, the intent was to create a pan-Canadian youth program that would raise awareness of Canada's heritage and institutions. Indeed, its founders felt very strongly that the program would "make a significant impact in promoting a better understanding of Canada among young Canadians."

In 1982, the CUC purchased the former Our Lady of Mount Carmel School in Ottawa, and conducted extensive renovations to transform it into a self-contained residential complex for the new youth program. The facility was named the Terry Fox Canadian Youth Centre, as a tribute to this young Canadian whose courage and determination while battling cancer inspired the entire nation. On September 19th, 1982, the Centre officially welcomed its first young people.

In 1983, the Centre was exceptionally lucky to receive a $250,000 donation from one of its most loyal and generous supporters, the Royal Canadian Legion. Originally a wedding gift to Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer from the Legion, the royal couple redirected this money to the Centre when visiting it later that year.

The various Royal Canadian Legion provincial commands and their branches continued to supply their own support for the program. In particular, the B.C./Yukon Command for a number of years donated $20,000 per year to subsidize B.C. students going to the program. This program proved so beneficial that the Dominion initiated a national program, whereby a $100 per participant subsidy for participation fees was provided for a period of five years. This amounted to a $1.8 million dollar donation for the program. This generous donation greatly alleviated our recruiting challenges while maintaining the principal of national equity.

In March of 2006, the federal government decided to end the funding for the Canadian Unity Council. After forty years, the programs initiated by the CUC, which played such an instrumental part in promoting Canadian unity, collapsed. When the funding cancellation was announced, a massive, national letter campaign to save the Encounters with Canada program commenced. Letters went to every Member of Parliament, senator, the Prime Minister, the Heritage Minister, other cabinet ministers, the provincial ministries of education, the Dominion and provincial commands and the Royal Canadian Legion, past EWC participants and their parents, schools, school districts and teacher associations across the country. The result was instant and huge.  This campaign resulted in many of these people and organizations writing to the Prime Minister, the Heritage Minister and their own MPs, objecting to the cancellation. In May 2006, Heritage Minister Oda publicly announced that the Encounters with Canada program would be saved. This meant that the program had to be sold by the Canadian Unity Council. It was eventually purchased by The Historica Foundation, adding it to its roster of quality Canadian programs.

In 2007, EWC celebrated its 25th anniversary, and it is still going strong.

We're extremely proud of our legacy, and we continue to look towards the future with great enthusiasm!