Chestermere’s Mental Health Coalition is continuing to support residents by offering initiatives focusing on mental health and wellness.
The coalition in partnership with local not-for-profits and school counsellors met with Chestermere Lake Middle School students at a mental health trade fair.
“I’m always surprised about how open the kids are in talking about their mental health and wellness,” Leslie Racz said. “Now kids are back in the groove of being together, stigma is less, and they are less reluctant to talk about mental health.”
The coalition and not-for-profits not only talked with students about mental health and wellness but also shared tools and resources students can utilize.
During the mental health trade fair, the coalition ensured students have someone in who they could confide, many of which were their parents.
“It was so nice to have an easy, flowing conversation with them, they really, really engaged with people,” Racz said. “It was really nice to have that profile in the middle school. That’s an age that is great to have a mental health fair for.”
The coalition, Stepping Stones to Mental Health, the Chestermere Regional Community Association (CRCA) and other not-for-profits also addressed mental health and recreation among girls in the community during the annual Go Girl event on March 17.
“We took over the whole recreation centre, we had eight different activities for the girls to flow through over a day. They were exhausted,” Racz said.
Throughout the day, 140 girls between nine and 15 participated in activities including curling, boxing, cross fit, dry land ringette, and nutrition sessions.
“It was a lot of sports that typically girls wouldn’t try out for, but they got exposure,” Racz said.
“It was great, the girls were wonderful, and they really enjoyed the day,” she added. “It was great for their mental health, it’s such a good thing for their mental health to try new things.”
Racz noted the Go Girl event showcased how well the not-for-profits work together in the community.
“It really speaks to how the not-for-profits get together in our community and keep the things we had pre-COVID going, we’re getting them up and rolling again,” she said.
In addition to events, the mental health coalition is offering counselling resources to youth and families through the centre for leadership.
“Getting our resources out is always important to us as a coalition,” Racz said.
Visit the Chestermere Mental Health Coalition Facebook page for more resources.
