Sisters of St. Ann donate $500,000 to health centre
The Sisters of St. Ann have donated $500,000 to a local rehabilitation program for people struggling with mental illness.
Connections Place, a community centre-style clubhouse offering mental-health services and support, is scheduled to open in Victoria in February 2019.
“People in Victoria are waiting for this,” said Georgina Patko, executive director of Connections Place. “It will be a place for people living with mental illness to find opportunity and hope. A sense of belonging is created through meaningful work and relationships which arise from the members’ interests are linked to the operation of the clubhouse.”
Connections Place will open at 3375 Oak St., across from Uptown Mall. It will be based on the Clubhouse International model, which originated in New York City in 1948. There are now 330 clubhouses operating around the world, including 18 in Canada.
“This gift means so much,” said Connections Place chairwoman Jackie Powell, who is the driving force behind the program. “It paves the way for people to reach their full potential and live meaningful, dignified, happy lives.”
Powell did not know where to turn for help when her son was discharged from hospital after a mental-health breakdown. Five years ago, she and other parents with children with mental-health issues banded together to form Moms Like Us. That group was the beginning of the campaign to build Connections Place.
“The mission of the Sisters of St. Ann from the beginning, has been to help people achieve the fullness of life by responding to the needs of the time,” the sisters said in an email.
“Among many important and worthy causes, mental health was recently identified as a priority for our contributions. The current needs of young adults with mental illness are enormous and we are convinced that the Clubhouse model will be of great benefit to these individuals, their families and the community as a whole.”
People who use the clubhouse are members, not clients. They are connected with services right out of the hospital and helped with everything from paperwork and housing to jobs and social programs.
A clubhouse is deliberately understaffed so that members are wanted and needed. Staff work alongside members to find and foster their strengths.
The daily operation of the clubhouse includes answering the phone, assisting with the outreach program, running the kitchen and restaurant, working in the thrift or gift shop or helping in the wellness unit.
Staff do not have separate offices. All space is shared so no one can tell who are members and who are staff.
Being a member of the clubhouse is expected to lessen the pressure on social services, result in shorter hospital stays, fewer incarcerations and general improvement in the quality of life for people living with mental illness, Patko said.
The $500,000 donation makes Connections Place possible, said Patko.
“It was very hard for Jackie to persuade Island Health that this was something to put money into,” she said. “This gives us the opportunity to show how well the program will work.”
Patko worked in the Toronto clubhouse. With a membership of 1,500, about 200 people were there every day, she said. She expects the Victoria clubhouse will have about 500 members and see about 20 to 30 a day.
“We are very open to talking to people who are interested in this project,” Patko said. “If they would like to visit, they are welcome.”
The Sisters of St. Ann was founded in 1850 by Marie Anne Blondin in Vaudreuil, Quebec. They settled in Victoria in 1858. After their arrival in Victoria, the sisters founded schools, hospitals and a broad range of programs in communities throughout B.C., Yukon, Alaska and Washington State.
Today, they provide resources to help individuals attain the fullness of life and foster communities that support the dignity of all persons. They are especially concerned for women, children and youth and those who experience economic and social exclusion.