A Message from CMHA Calgary’s Board Chair

I am very proud to have spent the last year chairing the Board of Directors of the Canadian Mental Health Association – Calgary Region. My original connection to this organization and its amazing work has come from witnessing family members struggle with their mental health. It is very clear to me that our mental health not only determines how we participate in the world, but is also a key factor in our overall well-being.

This has been no more obvious than in the last three years, when we know that Canadians, Albertans, and Calgarians in large numbers have struggled with their mental wellness. People were isolated and fearful, not knowing when the pandemic would become less threatening. We know from data reported by CMHA National that 77% of adults have felt that their mental health has been affected by the pandemic, including being stressed, lonely or isolated. In addition, the CMHA National research indicated that 54% of Albertans were unable to receive the mental health support they needed because they couldn’t afford to pay.

CMHA Calgary responded to the needs of Calgarians throughout the pandemic and continues to do so, now in a world that is moving forward from those times. The end of the worst of the pandemic has not reduced the need for mental health services in our city. In fact, demand for CMHA Calgary’s programs has increased, such as our Welcome Centre which saw a 67% increase in total contacts from April 1, 2022 to March 31, 2023, and the organization continues to grow and adapt to the ever-changing needs of our clients.

However, as more and more people are experiencing mental health challenges and the complexity of needs increases, we have seen the funding environment throughout the city and the country evolve and change as well.

Calgary Chamber of Voluntary Organizations (CCVO) states in their Too Essential to Fail Report, that non-profits in Calgary “are experiencing higher demand for their services and higher complexity of community needs – all while adapting to a new context with fewer resources.” Their survey also indicates that 48% of non-profits have identified an ongoing reduction in revenue. Imagine Canada states that across Canada more than half of non-profits are dealing with revenue declines of more than 40%.

CMHA Calgary has unfortunately not escaped the reality of seeing funding changes affect the organization. As a result of reduced funding, extremely tough decisions had to be made. We were very disappointed to have closed the Counselling Programs within the organization. The niche services of suicide bereavement, grief and loss, and family support have helped many over the years. Unfortunately, we understand that there is still a great need for these services in our community. We are pleased that our Community Navigator is able to help individuals and families find similar services and resources in the community to help in these difficult times.

While financially, this year has been challenging, we also celebrate that CMHA Calgary has a large network of caring Calgarians who have continued their support of the organization and its programs. We are so grateful to our individual donors, funders, corporations, and communities who held fundraising events in support of CMHA Calgary. We know that there are many competing and worthy options for your hard-earned money, and we appreciate your ongoing support and trust in CMHA Calgary to deliver the best services to our clients.

I would like to extend my deepest thanks to my fellow Board Members for offering your time and expertise to help guide CMHA Calgary this past year. The Board welcomed several new members this year and we have worked very hard to provide excellent guidance and governance to the organization. The Board is hopeful that in the coming year, our core funding and ongoing donations will continue to grow and increase so we can continue to expand CMHA Calgary’s programs and service offerings.

As our organization continues to expand, we have continuously seen a small, but extremely dedicated, group of volunteers who offer their time to CMHA Calgary. There are those who assist regularly at our bingos, and also those who have helped out at our community fundraising events. All of these volunteer roles are incredibly important to helping CMHA Calgary expand our reach, while also bringing in funding to support the organization.

A volunteer’s work is so extremely important to any organization, and CMHA Calgary wants you to know that your time and commitment to this cause are appreciated more than you can know. Like funding, there are many competing and worthy places to dedicate your time and we are so grateful that you have chosen to spend some of your time with us.

On behalf of the Board of Directors, I would like to thank Sara Jordan, our Executive Director, and all of the CMHA Calgary employees who have brought their care, support, and talents to help our clients and community each and every day. Your steadfast commitment to CMHA Calgary over the last very challenging years has allowed this organization to continue to provide the critically needed services to Calgarians. You are the reason we are able to strive towards providing mental health for all.

We look forward to this next year and all of its opportunities, while remembering to reflect on the successes, learning opportunities, and joys from this past year.

Kerry Brown

Board Chair
Canadian Mental Health Association – Calgary Region

A Message from CMHA Calgary’s Executive Director

The past year at CMHA Calgary came with many new beginnings, successes, challenges, and tough times. More individuals than ever are experiencing mental health challenges and as an organization, we continue to see clients who have more complex needs.

There is much to celebrate from this past year with new beginnings and re-openings. As pandemic restrictions eased even more in the summer of 2022, our staff were finally able to fully open in-person services at our Welcome Centre so that we could engage face-to-face with our clients while offering our Peer Support Services. We also welcomed students back to in-person classes in our Recovery College, while still having virtual options for individuals.

Our School of Peer Support doubled its intake this year to 64 students. Our School of Peer Support provides training for individuals with lived experience with a mental health or substance use concern to become Peer Support Workers and provide support to others in the community. The 110% increase in the number of students provides even more individuals with the skills to help others in the community once they finish their training and practicums.

Through our partnership with Horizon Housing and Alberta Health Services, we opened 5 additional beds this past year to help our clients move towards increasing their level of independence while still having support available from CMHA Calgary Supportive Living Coordinators.

In our Post-Discharge Transition Program, which sees individuals being discharged from hospital inpatient psychiatry units to our supportive housing program, we moved to have 24/7 staffing in two homes to better support our clients as we have seen acuity levels have risen with substance use and mental health challenges.

Our Continuing Connections Program, which operates out of long-term care facilities to provide recreation and leisure activities for those facing loneliness and isolation, expanded its services to those aged 65 plus.

Our Community Education Team worked extremely hard this past year to launch our new self-guided online mental health program, called EQUIPPED. It builds on the basic concepts taught in our YouthSMART programming, but is expanded for a slightly older audience of emerging adults from ages 16 to 24. The first learning modules launched in September 2022, while the new Skills for Being There module launched in May 2023. We are extremely thankful to an anonymous donor for providing the funds to reach this new age range.

Even with all of these accomplishments, it was with great sadness that we had to announce the closure of our Counselling Program, including individual counselling, closed group counselling, Survivors of Suicide Loss Day, and drop-in counselling. This program has provided services to those who have lost someone to suicide, dealt with grief and loss, or had a loved one struggling with a mental health or substance use concern. Closures were made due to funding changes.

We appreciate all the efforts and contributions that our supporters have made over the years to the Counselling Department. We truly are thankful for the time, dedication, and support you have shown our staff and organization.

We continue to expand our reach in the Calgary community to promote our programs and services. In particular, we were extremely thankful to the Ismaili Group of the Prairies for selecting us as their feature charity in the 2022 Stampede Parade. Their large group of volunteers put in thousands of hours to create a wonderful float to promote mental health.

We were very thankful to so many community fundraisers who chose us as their charity of choice for events over this past year. This includes Bullbustin’, the Calgary Chamber of Commerce Golf Tournament, BlueStar Engineering Invitational Golf Tournament, and Hockey Talks with the Flames Foundation, just to name a few. We also held our last ever Energize Don’t Hide Event, which saw participants raise almost $70,000! Thank you to everyone who has participated, volunteered, and donated towards our Ride Don’t Hide and Energize Don’t Hide events since 2014.

As I reflect on all these accomplishments from the past year, I want to acknowledge that as an organization, we have faced many changes, along with an increasing need for mental health support in the community. On behalf of the Executive Leadership Team, I want to thank our amazing team of staff who worked so hard over the past year. Thank you all for being committed to CMHA Calgary as we have had to navigate these challenges, while also providing excellence in care, service provision, and concern for our clients.

As we move forward in our next fiscal year, we are excited to expand on the work from the past year. We are thrilled to launch more programs for emerging adults, expand our reach through workplace mental health education, and educational materials for kids, while providing enhanced mental health support for our clients in our housing programs.

Sara Jordan

Executive Director
Canadian Mental Health Association – Calgary Region