Three all candidates nights for South Dundas hosted by local Chamber of Commerce

IROQUOIS – The suicide rate in Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry and Prescott-Russell is twice the provincial average. That is the reason the local Canadian Mental Health Agency and people like Augusta Waddell, believe so strongly in the importance of mental health promotion in schools.

Waddell’s late son suffered from mental health issues and since his loss, Waddell has tirelessly worked toward improving mental health locally, by making the community more aware of the help and resources that are available. Also, she has been part of fundraising initiatives that have helped bring funds and awareness to programs that she believes are important to have locally. 

Joanne Ledoux-Moshonas, manager of mental health promotions with the local mental health agency, accepted a cheque November 1, from Augusta Waddell and Margaret Swerdfeger, who organized a Halloween dance and silent auction fundraiser. The well-supported event raised $6,166.

“The event was great,” said Waddell.  “The support was amazing.” 

Swerdfeger, said that the silent auction featured some wonderful items, generously donated by both individuals and business, not only locally but from across the region. 

“People were very supportive of the auction, but what was remarkable, was that people who came to the event and supported the auction, often just wrote a cheque to donate to the cause too,” said Swerdfeger. “People are just so generous.”

Ledoux-Moshonas was overwhelmed by the amount of money raised through this one time event. 

The CMHA’s Mental Health Promotion in Schools program is not at all supported through government funding, so all of the funds that make this program which costs about $175,000 to operate annually, comes through fundraising and donations.

Mental Health Promotion in Schools is a program that the CMHA strives to take to every school, especially intermediate and high schools. 

The five day program works on day one to dispel myths, teaches about the various disorders on day two and day three focuses on suicide prevention. 

“That is an important focus,” said Ledoux-Moshonas, adding that the suicide rate in this area is twice that of the provincial average. 

Day four educates students on stress management and the supports that are available to help and day five features a guest speaker who shares a personal experience with mental illness.

The CMHA works in the schools to try and alleviate some of the stigma surrounding mental health. Stigma continues to be a huge problem for people living with mental illness. 

This stigma can hinder those with mental illness and their families from reaching out for the help they need.

Waddell sees this stigma as a barrier for the family support group sessions that she has organized to take place once a month in Iroquois. While people will stop her on the street for a chat, she still has yet to have people come to the family support group sessions. 

“People want to talk, but they won’t come, because they are embarrassed. Often they are frustrated by the system, and if they would come out, we could share our experiences and help. Talking about it makes life easier,” said Waddell. 

She will continue to be at the Iroquois Civic Centre at 6 p.m., the third Tuesday of every month, for anyone who needs the family support group. Anyone interested or with questions can email Augusta directly at augusta.waddell@gmail.com

[…]

A sewer use bylaw for South Dundas is in the works.

“This could be a very significant document,” said Todd Grant of AECOM who is working on drafting the document that aims to protect the sewer collection system from extraneous inflow by providing legal grounds for the elimination of improper connections.

An example of an improper connection would be a sump pump connection into the sanitary sewer system. 

These types of connections are believed to exist within the villages of South Dundas, and may be partially to blame for the extreme amounts of water that have overtaxed the waste water treatment plants during large rainfall events in the past.

Many municipalities already have sewer use bylaws in place. 

Grant explained to South Dundas council at the October 15 meeting that this document members of council are presently reviewing is not re-inventing the wheel. 

The current draft of the bylaw is similar to that of six municipalities much like South Dundas. 

Protecting the sewer collection system from corrosion, damage and obstruction, and protecting the wastewater treatment process from upset are the primary objectives of the bylaw. 

According to Grant, having this bylaw in place has the potential to improve the operational efficiency of the wastewater treatment plants by improving the influent quality and reducing influent inflows.

The draft document has been circulated to council for comment. 

It too will undergo a legal review before being presented to the public for input. After the public consultation process the document will require council acceptance before it becomes law. 

While the implementation of this bylaw has no financial implications for the municipality, this bylaw could be costly for some homeowners, where illegal connections do exist. They would be on the hook for costs associated with eliminating those illegal connections.

[…]

The St. Lawrence Parks Commission received $300,000 for four of its events as part of the April 5, Celebrate Ontario funding announcements.

Through the Celebrate Ontario initiative, the government is giving local events a boost to help grow tourism, create jobs and support economic growth.

This year, 203 festivals and events received funding. 

Festivals and events are proven visitor draws to both regions and tourism attractions.  

Over the past decade, the St. Lawrence Parks Commission has led the way in the development of three new shoulder season events that collectively have breathed new life into the tourism shoulder season plus numerous main season events that draw visitors to the region.  

Celebrate Ontario has announced it will fund event enhancements to four of the SLPC’s iconic events including:  Pumpkinferno and Alight at Night both at Upper Canada Village near Morrisburg and Fort Henry’s Concert Series and Fort Fright in Kingston.

“At the St. Lawrence Parks, as in any other business, product evolution and new product are at the core of sustainability.  As such, Celebrate Ontario’s investment in our new events contributes greatly to the longevity of our brand and the depth of our portfolio along the St.  Lawrence corridor and the Great Waterway region,” said Darren Dalgleish, General Manager & CEO, St. Lawrence Parks Commission.

The funding breaks down to $75,000 to each event and will be spent on innovations to help the events grow and remain appealing to visitors.

For Pumpkinferno, Celebrate Ontario will support the design, construction and presentation of an “experiential” exhibit as the must-see/do new feature in 2013, revitalization of the current displays, and improving accessibility along the tour, all towards renewing and  enhancing the customer experience.

As Alight at Night approaches its 13th season, Celebrate Ontario will support the research, design, installation and presentation of an all-new Special Effects Tour to entertain visitors during their rides on the Toy Train, in order to rejuvenate this long-standing family activity at the event. 

[…]