A message from CEO David Smith

As we head into the holiday season and a new year, I want to thank you for your continued support and dedication to our clients and our community.

Your support has helped over 340 clients explore ways to improve their overall health and well-being through our Client Wellness Initiative; and also helped our Youth Net team provide a safe space for 3,847 young people to learn, share and ask questions about stress, anxiety, bullying and substance use. These dynamic and impactful programs do not receive government funding which is why your support of CMHA Peel Dufferin is so greatly appreciated.

I also have to give a special thanks to some recent leadership donors. The Zonta Club of Brampton-Caledon for supporting the printing and distribution of our Quick Guide of mental health and addictions resources; HB Group Insurance Management Ltd. for their recent donation of $10,000; and to the Hasham Family for creating the Hasham Scholarship program that is helping 5 individuals pursue their educational goals.

Across the agency our dedicated staff continue to innovate, develop and improve our continuum of high-quality services to support those living with mental health or substance use issues in Brampton, Caledon, Mississauga, Dufferin County, Rexdale, North Etobicoke and West Woodbridge.

In Dufferin County we have improved services to include new family and addictions workers and recently expanded our 24.7 Crisis Support services into Dufferin County. In the New Year we are expanding our Access Services and moving to new offices in Orangeville to better support in-person walk-in inquires and to offer brief solution-focused Mental Health Counselling to individuals and families in Dufferin.

In response to this growing crisis and the need for increased supports for those with addictions in the Central West community, CMHA Peel Dufferin is establishing a Responsive Addiction Clinic to provide immediate access to lifesaving treatment by offering same-day counselling and addiction medication.

The homeless Outreach team also has some exciting news. In collaboration with the program partners (SHIP, John Howard Society, Salvation Army, Our Place Peel, Ontario Works & the Region of Peel) they have established Home for Good, the Region’s first team using the Housing First model.

The goal is to quickly move people experiencing homelessness into independent and permanent housing, then provide services to support physical and mental health, education, employment, substance use and community connections.

Our Mental Health and Justice Team is also expanding to provide increased support for the release from custody program and across the agency our Continuous Improvement Program allows ideas submitted by staff (of which over 30 have been submitted to date) to be explored and implemented.

This is just a small taste of the growth, innovation and excellence that continues to be a hallmark of CMHA Peel Dufferin. I hope you are as excited as we are to continue our work for greater access, greater support and greater impact in 2018.

On behalf our staff, board or directors and clients thank you and happy holidays.

Dave