'Friendly Calls' program expands to focus on support for Indigenous communities
A program run by the Canadian Red Cross that supports people with mental health challenges is being expanded, thanks to special funding from Bell Let’s Talk.
The $250-thousand partnership will enhance access to crisis services for people living with mental health challenges.
Friendly Calls began a few years ago and became a Canada-wide program in 2020. Now, a pilot project is starting in Manitoba this spring, tailored to the culture and needs of Indigenous groups, who are often located in remote areas.
Eighty-four-year old Pauline Werbowetsky became a Friendly Calls client a year ago, after a year of the pandemic left her lonely and down in her small community of Roblin, Manitoba.
Daughter-in-law Carmen Werbowetsky, who lives a 10-hour drive away in Edmonton recommended she join the program.
“Before the pandemic, she was quite connected in her community, with her church and other connections in the community but that hasn’t been the way over the past two years,” Carmen Werbowetsky said. “ She’s lost a lot of those connections.”
But now, Carmen can hear the energy and enjoyment in Pauline’s voice during their weekly phone calls. She says the Friendly Calls are often the highlight of Pauline’s week. Plus she knows if mental health problems start to creep in, the Red Cross volunteer is trained to spot them.
“They talk about all the things that are of importance and interest to her and it sounds like they have a lot in common,” Carmen Werbowetsky said about volunteer Catherine Sykes.
Sykes, who hails from Swift Current, Saskatchewan, was paired with Pauline after training and personal interviews. While she thought she would be doing something good for someone else, she says it also brings her joy.
“I ended up getting something like a surrogate grandmother," Sykes said. “She’s just a delight!”
Sykes said she started with 20-minute phone calls to Pauline but now their chats usually last an hour.
She said she is looking forward to training for the Indigenous Friendly Calls program, which is being developed with input from Indigenous elders and knowledge keepers.
“We are really looking at doing cultural safety training which encompasses a few different things,” Red Cross Director of Indigenous Relations, Shelley Cardinal, said. “We are looking at cultural awareness, we’re looking at cultural sensitivity”.
Cardinal said Indigenous culture has a holistic approach to health, in which mental, emotional and spiritual well-being are considered equally important to physical well-being.
But, she also points out that across Canada, there are many different First Nations, with different languages, beliefs and practices. She said offering mental health support to Indigenous communities will require training and sensitivity.
Still, she said, it will not be required that those volunteering with the new Friendly Calls program be of Indigenous backgrounds, but they must listen with care, without judgement and with cultural awareness.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Orca calf that was trapped in B.C. lagoon for weeks swims free
An orca whale calf that has been stranded in a B.C. lagoon for weeks after her pregnant mother died swam out on her own early Friday morning.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
'I was scared': Ontario man's car repossessed after missing two repair loan payments
An Ontario man who took out a loan to pay for auto repairs said his car was repossessed after he missed two payments.
Powerful tornado tears across Nebraska, weather service warns of 'catastrophic' damage
Devastating tornadoes tore across parts of eastern Nebraska and northeast Texas Friday as a multi-day severe thunderstorm event ramped up in the central United States, injuring at least three people.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Trump's lawyers try to discredit testimony of prosecution's first witness in hush money trial
Donald Trump's defence team attacked the credibility Friday of the prosecution's first witness in his hush money case, seeking to discredit testimony detailing a scheme between Trump and a tabloid to bury negative stories to protect the Republican's 2016 presidential campaign.