THUNDER BAY – The Ontario government is making it easier and faster for youth to connect with mental health and substance use services by launching a new Youth Wellness Hub to serve Thunder Bay and surrounding areas.
The government is adding 10 new hubs to the network of 22 hubs opened since 2020. This brings the total to 32 hubs across the province.
Kevin Holland, member of provincial parliament for Thunder Bay – Atikokan, said this is fantastic for Thunder Bay.
“When I first got elected, I started engaging with all the agencies and community groups that are dealing with mental health and addictions in the city. It became very clear to me that we needed to have that round table discussion.
“From that, we held two with Minister Jones and one with Associate Minister Michael Tibollo about bringing the organizations together to have that discussion about what gaps were missing in Thunder Bay,” he said.
According to Holland, this is the second of three announced initiatives that are coming to Thunder Bay.
“This is really going to fill that gap for youth between 12 and 25 that may have slipped through the system.
“It will be able to provide that care for them as they develop to adults and become members of the community. (This will) generally just improve their overall health,” he said.
Diane Walker, chief executive officer of Children’s Centre Thunder Bay, said they have been hard at work for about a year.
“Today is the formal announcement that we have been granted some funding . . . and we can move forward with creating and implementing a Youth Wellness Hub.
“This is an opportunity to create a one stop shop for young people to get the mental health services and substance health services that they need,” she said.
Walker said in Thunder Bay there are lots of great service providers, however there are a lot of young people who have a hard time getting connected to them.
“The real important piece of this is it's a point of connection and access that is safe, that is caring, that is open, that is welcoming and supports both Indigenous and non-Indigenous youth.
“It’s this really cool space where you can come and get help and families can come and get help as well,” she said.
Walker is proud of the community, but the youth never fail to amaze her.
“I feel an amazing amount of gratitude for this community and the people that I work with. But most importantly, what really strikes me is the youth.”
Children’s Centre Thunder Bay is leading the co-design with local youth, community partners and Indigenous service providers.
The organization ensures that diverse youth voices and unique needs of Indigenous youth are the main focus with design and planning.
Gwen Carrasco, youth steering committee co-chair, said she started at the first youth forum back in November.
“I was one of the youth who led one of the circles. I led the 2SLGBTQIA+ support and how that would work within the new youth club.”
Carrasco said Walker pushed her to become more involved.
“Since then, I've been on the steering committee for the youth hub and I've been one of voices from there and it's been incredible."
Carrasco said it feels like “a beacon of hope.”
“I am used to having to fight against the grain my whole life and having to fight for things. It feels incredible when something finally goes our way,” she said.
“I think that if we support more youth, we are going to get incredible amounts of feedback and engagement from the community.
“People are always surprised when youth stand up and provide support and feedback. And by pushing and supporting more youth, we can get the results,” Carrasco said.
