July 15, 2022
Dear St.Amant Families,
I had the opportunity to connect with co-workers and people we support all over the city. Some of the children we support in one of our Autism Programs’ classrooms were excitedly asking questions and showing me around when I dropped by their space. People we support through CRP welcomed me into their homes. Staff from the CRP and the children’s respite home in Winnipeg shared their daily experiences with me. Thank you to everyone who welcomed me this week. I really appreciate your time, presence and questions.
All across St.Amant, I’m inspired by the Direct Support Professionals that I’ve met who are committed, compassionate, kind and incredibly skilled. Their expertise in this field is recognized and appreciated. I’m grateful for their dedication.
More than ever, we all feel the importance of human connection. I encourage you to take the summer to reconnect safely with others. I hope you can find the time to visit with friends and family and maybe return to a favourite hobby or activity. However you choose to connect, I do think that now is a good time to do so safely.
As I’ve mentioned before, we don’t know what will happen next with COVID. We will stay flexible as the pandemic continues to change. We are lucky to have a very strong team that is monitoring the situation and advising us on all of our COVID-related decisions. The same team is organizing a vaccine clinic on August 23, you can sign up here. As a reminder, please get your booster dose of the COVID-19 vaccine if you’re eligible, as soon as you can.
Living with the constant change and uncertainty of a global pandemic is stressful and can affect our mental health in important, and different, ways. For some of us, mental health stress can present itself physically; we may feel drained, and feel aches and pains. It’s different for each person. No matter how you’re feeling, there’s help available. There are free resources available on the BlueCross website here; sometimes a few minutes of meditation can make a world of difference.
Ben Adaman
President & CEO
