L’ACTE is by your side, one step at a time, since 1985
The Association des accidentés Cérébro-vasculaires et Traumatisés crâniens de l’estrie (ACTE) is a non-profit organization whose mission is to help and support victims of a traumatic brain injury (TBI) or of a cerebrovascular accident (Cva)(stroke) along their recovery process, as well as their family and close ones. We also have the mission to raise awareness about the serious issues faced by victims of TBI and CVA who must live their lives with a wide variety of serious handicaps, including behavioral problems which people may take out of context. While the brain damage is often invisible to the eye, the effects on an injured brain greatly vary from a person to the other and will often leave permanent damage. A multitude of factors, such as type of injury, severity of damage, length of time since the TBI or CVA, the person’s health and even their personality, will also influence their condition and their prospects for recovery. A period of disorganization following the trauma is to be expected and will also have many dire social, educational, or professional consequences, so it is of paramount importance that the victim of the injury receive professional help to minimise the destructive impact on his life of having lost some amount of brain function.
This is why ACTE was founded: we exist to help people by offering a range of services that are truly making a difference in the lives of those living with a damaged brain. We have a psychosocial team to listen, support and understand the needs of our members and their supporting team. We welcome everyone the way they are, in a spirit of breaking isolation, so that our members may have at least one place in their lives where they feel included and have their dignity respected. Most victims of severe brain damage are tempted to avoid human contacts, because they are different from before and have feelings of shame related to their disabilities. Many are no longer able to clearly express themselves or lack patience with others; loss of inhibition is a frequent result of brain injury, and it makes keeping a social life all the more difficult. So, in addition to personal care and attention, our members are encouraged to participate in a variety of activities designed with their limitations in mind, so that they may feel a belonging to our group and cultivate a social circle where they feel accepted for who they are.
At ACTE we offer seasonal calendar of all kinds of activities from sport to art, not forgetting cultural events. As other services we have a workshop to help people to increase their self-esteem and break isolation by doing a simple work fitting their handicap. We have also been buying adapted sport equipment for low mobility people. We even have a Kartus, a bicycle to go along running people. We rent out all of these to our members free of charge because we value family moments and sports. We also have the mandate to teach population about CVA and TBI and to make sure that victims’ rights are protected. Finally, we offer references to people who don’t know what other organisations may offer them to help, according to their specific needs and city.
Our association is Located at 759 Woodward Street in Sherbrooke, and we also have a service point in Granby at 170 Saint-antoine North Street, office 327. We are offering our services all through Eastern township. We are going forward with the community one step at the time for 40 years now.
Please do not hesitate to contact us if you need our services, or if you know someone who is. Membership is free and our activities are low priced. If you are able, please add our Facebook page as a friend, share the page with your friends, and if you feel generous, please donate using the QR code to help us continue our vital mission! Another way to help is collecting aluminum tabs from cans as well as used keys and dropping them at our location. Our members sort through them so that we may make proceeds from the recycling.