One Year Anniversary
March 28th was our official 1-year anniversary for our support meetings! After talking with our alumni it was clear that we needed to add more SCHC specific support meetings in their home communities, so off we went. We started in areas where the majority of our clients lived and, in a year, it has blossomed to cities across Canada.
The meetings are peer-facilitated and all run bi-weekly for about 2 hours depending on the group. Working in unison with our facilitators has been a great sense of pride for me and as we grow and change there’s a deep sense of community and connectedness. We’re not very vocal about our support meetings, so if you’re interested in attending any of the meetings listed below, send me an email at jaymieb@schc.ca or call/text 604.414.4949.
British Columbia Support Meetings
Vancouver Downtown
There was a group of men who took it upon themselves to create a SCHC-specific support group 3 years ago now. They were the pioneers and it has been a great resource for many men in the area. They have grown together as a group and lasted the test of time. It’s amazing to watch as they continue to grow!
Langley (Vancouver Lower Mainland)
In June 2015, we started another support group in Abbotsford to help our clients that live outside of the downtown area. We have recently voted on changing venues to Langley. This’ll help more people meet in the middle and will potentially, and hopefully, reach more individuals.
Kelowna
In May 2015, we started a support group in Kelowna. One of our clients hosts it at his sober house. They also get together for dinners and before meetings, making it that more sociable and cohesive to living a healthy lifestyle.
Powell River and Victoria (Vancouver Island)
We are currently working on providing private support meetings in Powell River (off site) and Victoria. We’ve recently seen an influx of clients moving to our beautiful town and there has been more interest in Victoria and southern Vancouver Island. It’s estimated to be up and running in the next few months, so stay tuned. We are extremely excited about adding these two new cities to our growing list!
Alberta Support Meetings
Edmonton
Edmonton was the March 2015 kick-off of support meetings last year. We have changed venues 3 times, but currently are settled in at the Strathcona Library. It has been a constant stream of support, from the beginning, for many of our men in that area and it continues to grow its base.
Calgary
Calgary was the second group created in March 2015. We have had the same home space for meetings on Haddon Road for the entire year. It has seen plenty of growth with the same guys that started up the group with us. The group usually has some of the highest attendance rates. Although, it changes from meeting to meeting.
Ontario Support Meetings
Toronto
Toronto, being the birthplace of many of our clients from Ontario, was a natural place to start. It has transitioned from a few different venues and had some time off, but now it has a new home on Spadina at The Center for Social Innovation. It will be a new place for our clients to meet as we see more from the big T-Dot.
Growing with the Flow
We have seen a great amount of success in many of these cities, and we have had many growing pains and some down times. But the truth remains the same: we want to create strong support wherever it’s needed and wherever there’s a demand for it. A stronger support network for our clientele is shown, through research, to have a positive influence on quality of life after addiction treatment. Our goal is to continue to support our clients in their post-treatment recovery, the best way we can!
Onwards and upwards.
