Dear Colleagues, 

As we move to the end of 2020, many organizations are preparing year-end reports. This year has definitely seen changes within many local organizations – both in what they are doing during the emergency and the way that services are delivered. Everyone has added more projects and more time as emergency funding has flowed. 

  • The United Way of Bruce Grey’s The Strength in Numbers: United Way Bruce Grey Pandemic Report  tallies up the collective efforts of many community partners to respond to emergency needs over the last 9 months in Grey Bruce while acknowledging there is much to be done to address underlying weaknesses in our social structures. 
  • The United Way of Bruce Grey has released a new video that shares the stories behind the data in its Data Collection Hub for Food Programs 
  • 211 Ontario‘s recent report Connection in the Time of Isolation presents data on the needs within the community in their 6 month report. 
  • Many reports compare the significant increase in services delivered compared to pre-COVID19 and make recommendations for change to address food security such as in Feed Ontario’s Hunger Report 2020 
  • Trish Hennessy and the team at Think Upstream reflect on the social determinants of health and going forward in their collective piece Hindsight in 2020. With the roll out of a vaccine in the future, more and more people are talking about what inequalities have been revealed and the rallying cry is to “build back better”. 

“If there is one thing Canada must do in our post-pandemic recovery, it is to not forget. Going back to normal is not good enough.” — Danyaal Raza, family physician at St. Michael’s Hospital (Unity Health Toronto) & Assistant Professor (University of Toronto)

FOOD SUPPORTS 

  • Many thanks to everyone that has shared their information to 211/Information Bruce Grey regarding Christmas assistance and dinners. Christmas Assistance and Dinners are listed on 211 and are divided by County. 
  • Please note that many community meals programs that have been distributing food daily or weekly shall continue throughout the Christmas holidays. In some cases, extra food is given out on Dec 24th to get people through Dec 25th. 
  • Please call ahead or check 211 for uptodate listings on the ongoing services provided through the holidays. 

HOUSING SUPPORTS

  • A reminder of the Winter 2020 Emergency Housing List. 
  • Over the holidays, emergency housing staff of various organizations – YMCA Housing, Safe N Sound, M’Wikwedong, The Women’s Centre and the Women’s House as well as the police shall be ensuring that anyone in need of shelter is served. 
  • Please contact 211 for 24/7 accurate information on how to access services. 

COMMUNICATION AND SYSTEM NAVIGATION SUPPORTS

VIOLENCE PREVENTION SUPPORTS

  • As part of the 16 Days of Activism on Violence Against Women, Violence Prevention Grey Bruce is posting daily activism blogs on their website.
  • Tanya Coulter (Indigenous Healing and Wellness Strategy Program Coordinator, M’Wikwedong Indigenous Friendship Centre) asks herself “How do we activate our activist self when we are collectively overwhelmed and exhausted?”  In her article she answers: “How we are able to cope, manage and respond to the stressors brought about by this worldwide pandemic are intrinsically connected to our Social Determinants of Health and our Allostatic Load.  One’s Allostatic Load is defined as “the wear and tear on the body” which accumulates as an individual is exposed to repeated or chronic stress. We must activate our awareness to consider both aspects.”  And we need to “remind us yet again to be more compassionate and more kind and more forgiving.”
  • The Public Health Agency of Canada is inviting eligible organizations to submit a Letter of Intent (LOI) for projects that build the evidence-base about preventing and addressing family violence and its health impacts. Details on the proposal are at this link. 
  • Applications must be submitted using the Agency’s Preventing and Addressing Family Violence LOI Template. To obtain a copy of the LOI Template, please contact: phac.chpv-pscv.aspc@canada.ca with the subject line “LOI Preventing and Addressing Family Violence”. LOIs must be submitted by 11:59pm EST on January 27, 2021.

Stay well, Jill 

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