Archive for the ‘News’ Category

CHOICES Volunteer Opportunity

HELP YOUTH AGED 12-17 MAKE THE RIGHT LIFE CHOICES

Choices encourages youth to think and act positively, and feel more confident.

Volunteers participate every week for 10 weeks as role models, supporting youth to find the right direction in life. You must be 19 years of age or older and fully vaccinated against COVID-19. View our flyer.

DAY AND EVENING OPPORTUNITIES ARE AVAILABLE IN 2 ½ HOUR SHIFTS
2023 TRAINING (MANDATORY)
Saturday, January 21st · 9:00am to 5:00pm

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Governance Training

Governance Training

We offer customized, innovative workshops that support organizational health on many topics such as:

  • Board Governance – Register today for the 2022-2023 session!
  • Mindfulness
  • Mental Health Issues
  • Substance Abuse/Addictions Issues
  • Communication
  • Conflict Resolution

Download Flyer

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Eight Agencies Tackle Urgent Mental Health Needs

Eight Community Service Agencies Walk Together to Tackle Urgent Mental Health Needs in Thunder Bay and District.

Free mental health counselling and support is now available daily across the city and District.

Thunder Bay, ON, May 2, 2022 – It’s Mental Health Week in Canada and eight local community service agencies have come together to improve access to mental health counselling and support in Thunder Bay and District. FREE walk-in and/or talk-in mental health counselling is now available Monday to Friday, at diverse locations throughout the community, with services offered in French, Cree and Oji-Cree.

Recognizing the critical need to improve access to mental health services and supports, Thunder Bay Counselling and Children’s Centre Thunder Bay hosted a meeting of interested agencies to look for new ways to improve services. The outcome of the meeting was a commitment to collaborate as a working group to expand the availability of free walk-in mental health counselling and supports.

The eight participating agencies are:

  • Alpha Court
  • Canadian Mental Health Association
  • Catholic Family Development Centre
  • Children’s Centre Thunder Bay
  • Dilico Anishinabek Family Care
  • North of Superior Counselling Programs
  • Our Kids Count
  • Thunder Bay Counselling

Says Nancy Chamberlain, Thunder Bay Counselling; “Providing quick and safe access to mental health services are among the biggest concerns for people in our community, and the challenges in the system were only escalated during the pandemic. These challenging times have created a pressing need but also new opportunity for local community service agencies to work together in ways we would have never considered before. We are proud to offer the community access to free and immediate walk-in mental health services.”

As part of the new initiative, a community-wide Walk-in/Talk-in Counselling calendar is being developed. It will list and promote the daily walk-in/talk-in counselling locations and hours of operation. The goal is for people to be able to quickly find a service and walk-in or talk-in immediately for services without an appointment or being put on a wait list.

Says Diane Walker, Children’s Centre Thunder Bay, “We recognize this is just the beginning to remove barriers and get people the help they need when they need it. As a working group, we are already looking at solutions to expand hours of operation, add new locations, improve cultural supports, and integrate complimentary wrap-around services with additional partners.”

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Supportive Workplace Training Course for Managers and Supervisors

THE SUPPORTIVE WORKPLACE

A Training Course for Managers and Supervisors

Give your managers the skills to support the mental health and wellbeing of your employees

The Supportive Workplace Course has been designed specifically for front-line managers and supervisors. It provides them with the right skills to support employees who may be facing personal struggles at home or in the workplace.

What is The Supportive Workplace?

The Supportive Workplace Course empowers managers to build a supportive workplace environment that promotes mental well-being. This seven-module online course provides training insight and tools to recognize and address the signs of low mental well-being among employees. It also offers best practices for effectively promoting employee mental wellness and work productivity. After completing this course, managers should be able to:

  • Lead an effective conversation on mental health-related issues
  • Identify suitable ways of support if one of their employees is experiencing a mental health problem
  • Practice self-care to meet their own needs, and
  • Apply long-term interventions to create a supportive and psychologically safe workplace environment.

What's included

  • 7 learning modules that deliver all the knowledge and skills needed to be a more confident and skilled leader capable of supporting employees’ mental health and well-being. (7-9 hours to complete at the learner's own pace).
  • Interactive activities, videos, scripts, demonstrations, and quizzes to enhance learning and give managers the skills to implement best practices in your workplace
  • A downloadable course workbook containing key concepts from the course and application exercises to enhance learning.
  • Full access to the course for 12 months

The Advantages

  1. AWARENESS. We give managers just the right amount of mental health and mental illness information to identify issues when they see them.
  2. BOUNDARIES AND GUIDELINES. We specifically address what the role of a manager is (and isn’t) in supporting and addressing employee mental health challenges.
  3. COMMUNICATIONS. We provide scripts and demonstrations on having confident conversations so they’ll know exactly what to say and not to say.
  4. LEADERSHIP. We help employees become more effective people leaders, giving them the skills and strategies they’ll need to create a healthy and supportive work environment.
  5. PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT. We provide leaders with a Supportive Workplace Certificate to add to their portfolio and resume, demonstrating they’re skilled leaders for today’s workplace.
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Thunder Bay Counselling & Children’s Centre Thunder Bay Announce Strategic Alliance

Two community-based organizations formalize long-standing partnership

Thunder Bay, ON, February 16, 2022 - Thunder Bay Counselling and Children’s Centre Thunder Bay are pleased to announce they have entered into a formal Strategic Alliance, designed to enhance their capacity to serve children, youth, adults, and families in the District of Thunder Bay and area.

With increasingly complex community service needs, the Alliance aims to increase efficiencies and maximize resources to deliver the best possible services to clients. It is a progressive and highly transformative approach for the community services sector.

Says Nancy Chamberlain, Executive Director, Thunder Bay Counselling; “The formalization of our long-standing partnership is the next logical step in the evolution of our working relationship. Our organizations share a common goal to improve the quality of life for individuals and families in Thunder Bay and area, and this model will allow us to be more effective in responding and meeting community needs.”

The new Strategic Alliance brings together decades of professional experience and clinical expertise to help support the unique health and wellbeing challenges facing people and communities. As an Alliance, the organizations offer a wide range of health, mental health, development, social and support services to people throughout their lifespan. The collaboration will also create new opportunities for sharing knowledge, best practices, and service resources.

Says Diane Walker, CEO of Children’s Centre Thunder Bay; “Working together, we can better address gaps in the system, improve access, remove barriers, and provide the best possible service experiences. It’s about being efficient and innovative through service integration and shared leadership to realize improved community outcomes.”

The Strategic Alliance is not a merger and instead, leverages the unique strengths and assets of each organization to enhance their collective reach and impact. As part of the Alliance, both Thunder Bay Counselling and Children’s Centre Thunder Bay will keep their independence, while agreeing to a new level of governance and operational cooperation.

Thunder Bay Counselling and Children’s Centre Thunder Bay share a longstanding history of working individually and collectively to support children, youth, adults, and families in Thunder Bay and region. One of their most successful joint initiatives has been the Walk-In Counselling Clinic, which is now in its 15th year of service.

“This is an exciting and important alliance for Thunder Bay Counselling in 2022,” says Renee Monsma, Chair of Thunder Bay Counselling Board of Directors. “We believe that clients, staff and the Board will greatly benefit from the collaborations to come, and our joint strengths puts us in a better position to tackle today’s community health and wellbeing issues well into the future.”

“The purpose of the Strategic Alliance is to engage in continuous quality improvements at the governance, managerial, administrative, and service levels,” says Tara Gauld, Chair of Children’s Centre Thunder Bay Board of Directors. “There are so many important issues of mutual interest to our organizations, and through this Alliance we can find ways to affect community change together. The new Alliance will have longevity to continue to enhance services the organizations provide well into the future, as they strive toward a shared mission and to achieve a broad continuum of integrated services.

The Strategic Alliance has been endorsed by each organization’s respective Board of Directors and is effective February 16, 2022.

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Victims Services Map

Thunder Bay Counselling Launches Virtual Victims Services Map to Breakdown Barriers and Increase Access to Supports

Thunder Bay, ON, November 15, 2021 - As a part of National Victims and Survivors of Crime Week, today Thunder Bay Counselling in partnership with Sexual Abuse Centre Thunder Bay and Faye Peterson House, launched a new virtual Victim Services Map that identifies victims of crime supports available throughout the city of Thunder Bay and Fort William First Nation.

The interactive online map, made possible with the support of the Department of Justice Canada, features 29 locations that can also be searched through categories of Addiction, Child Protection, Counselling, Immediate Support, Justice, Medical, and Women’s Shelters.

“The faces of crime victims are those of our family, friends, neighbours and community members. Anyone can become a victim of crime, and victims should not feel alone. The Victim Services Map is a tool that can be quickly and easily accessed on a mobile device or computer by those who are a victim of crime and need support nearby. It’s a new way to navigate the system with local resources listed all in one place,” says Nancy Chamberlain, Executive Director, Thunder Bay Counselling

A victim of crime is a person who has suffered physical or emotional harm, property damage, or economic loss as a result of a crime committed by another person. Types of crime can include assault, domestic violence, home invasion, sexual assault, human trafficking, homicide, elder abuse and neglect. According to the Thunder Bay Police Service, in 2020, Thunder Bay recorded 1,875 crimes of violence alone, which doesn’t include other types of crime and those not reported.

“Surviving a crime is not something that happens overnight. Being a victim can be a very traumatic experience that may result in physical, emotional, and psychological challenges,” explains Deb Dika, Executive Director, Sexual Assault Centre Thunder Bay. “The effects of crime can persist for years and have life-long impacts for some victims. Immediate support can lead to possible positive outcomes and mitigate some long-term impacts.”

The theme for National Victims and Survivors of Crime Week is “The Power of Collaboration”. Throughout the week, Thunder Bay Counselling and its partners will continue to raise awareness about victims’ issues and introduce the community to the important resources and services available.

“There is a need within the victims services field for increased collaboration, as well as enhanced coordination, partnerships and multi-disciplinary responses to better support victims,” says Debbie Zweep, Executive Director, Faye Peterson House. “The Victim Services Map helps break down barriers, with organizations working together to ensure that survivors of crime receive the services and supports they need when they need it. This not only helps the individual heal, but it also improves community safety and wellbeing. “

As an example of community collaboration and partnership, the Victim Services Map was developed as a tool that can be viewed on many service provider web-sites, including Thunder Bay Counselling’s at: tbaycounselling.com/victim-services-map.

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Tomorrow Without Violence 2021

A group for children and teens who have experienced domestic violence.

1 day in person group | May 14th 2022 9am - 3pm

For more information call: Janna (807) 683-4710

Tomorrow Without Violence is a group for children, teens, and moms to learn about the impact of family violence including physical, sexual, emotional, and financial abuse.

The group provides a safe place to discuss the violence, begin to heal from its effects and learn that it is not okay and not their fault.  The group also supports mothers in learning how to support their children’s healing.

Registration Form
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