It was back on July 11 that I first sat down with Const. Joel Imbeau at the Minden OPP station.

One of his boss’, Sgt. Paul McDonald, had reached out earlier in the year to tell me that Imbeau had been appointed the mental health and addiction liaison officer – working hand-in-hand with the Canadian Mental Health Association, Haliburton Kawartha Pine Ridge (CMHA HKPR) on the mobile crisis response team.

Full disclosure. Even though Imbeau had been doing the job along with CMHA HKPR since February, I hadn’t heard of it. 

I would go on to learn that CMHA HKPR and OPP had been collaborating on the mental health program since 2021. However, there had been staffing challenges. McDonald said they simply didn’t have the resources at Minden HQ to appoint someone permanent, full-time to the job. Instead, officers were assigned piecemeal. For example, if they were on light duties, they might be slotted into the role for a few months. But then they would go back to regular duty. The initiative didn’t have an opportunity to fully take root.

That is not to say it was not helping people. Far from it. Predecessors of Imbeau and the current mental health worker with CMHA HKPR did some valiant work. But the lack of a fully committed officer at OPP was an impediment.

Until now. Since Imbeau has been appointed, OPP and CMHA HKPR are seeing the type of continuity needed to bring the program nearer to its full potential.

Simply put, when police get called to an incident and it is suspected mental health may be playing a role, Imbeau and the CMHA HKPR mental health worker go in live time. Or, if they are not rostered on, they follow-up.

The cop shows up at the door to make sure it’s safe. Then he introduces the mental health worker, saying that person can likely do more than he can at this stage.

They seek consent, and if given, are able to work with these people to try to better their physical health, mental health, or both, in hopes police do not have to be called again, and the person does not end up in the ER time and time again.

Ultimately, it is about ensuring people get the physical and mental health support they need.

So far, the statistics are pointing to the program working.

Today – in part one of a series – we introduce you to the players and the program. In part two, we talk to some of the community partners who are involved, since the program could not succeed without their assistance. In part three, we speak with a client of the program – putting a face to how it is helping people in our community.

It’s taken four months since that initial chat with Imbeau to get this series researched and written. It’s been a job that has had to be placed on the backburner due to other editorial demands. However, we always felt it was an important story to tell. We are hopeful people throughout Haliburton County will become more familiar with some of the services that are available to them. 

A friend told me a funny story on the weekend – about how her uncle refused to accept daylight savings time. Said uncle would not change his clocks in the spring or fall. Asked if he missed any appointments as a result, my friend said her uncle recognized the time had changed elsewhere, but refused to acknowledge it at home.

This is always a tough time of the year for me. I dread daylight savings time in the fall as I dislike the earlier dark in the evening. My body also goes into appetite overdrive – as though my very life depends on fattening up for the coming winter.

It doesn’t, just as one has to wonder if daylight savings time has run its course.

Our nation first used daylight savings time during the First World War. This followed a global push to conserve fuel and reduce the need for electric light. The idea was that people would use less energy to light their homes if they had more daylight hours during working hours. 

However, some people believe daylight savings time is no longer as effective as it once was. The energy required for air conditioning, heaters, and electronics is now much greater than the energy saved by reducing lighting. 

Further, the Canadian Sleep Society has called for an end to daylight savings time. It wreaks havoc with our slumber around the two times changes. I know I hit the Melatonin for about a week around the adjustment each spring and fall.

Further, some places in Canada do not change the time at all, including parts of British Columbia, Ontario, Quebec, and Nunavut.

In 2020, Ontario passed a law to stop observing daylight savings time, but that was contingent on New York state and Quebec doing the same. That hasn’t happened. However, Quebec is asking its citizens via an online public consultation if it’s time to scrap the practice.

Long-time letter writer Beverly MacDuff of Gooderham wrote to say she’s not sure what the fuss is about. She seems to think daylight savings time was created to aid weather forecasting and train travel. She’s seen many clocks change over the years. She said it had not impacted her mental health or overall well-being. She also thinks there are bigger fish to fry than whether or not Ontario should scrap daylight savings time; such as war and violence. Bev’s advice? Enjoy the slower pace that daylight savings time has given us to relax and breathe a little easier. 

Maybe she’s right. As humans, we are intrinsically linked with nature. Winter is when I most feel like hibernating; staying at home, and craving more sleep, comfort food and the warmth of the fireplace. It’s time for quiet and introspection. In a world ravaged by war and other cataclysmic events, it’s the great pause, the great reset that we all so desperately need. 

So, while daylight savings time was invented to conserve electric light… in today’s world, maybe it’s all about conserving our inner light. Despite the disrupted sleep and food cravings, it might not be a bad thing after all.

After allowing it to seemingly flounder for three or so years, the province has stepped in to save the Kawartha Haliburton Children’s Aid Society.

The Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services has stepped in and appointed a supervisor to run the agency that is headquartered in Peterborough, with offices in Lindsay and Haliburton.

They had lots to say about how they had lost confidence in the local executive and its board. They don’t think the status quo can right the operational or financial ship.

The province says it’s given KHCAS nearly $5 million more than its usual handout since 2020-21. Further, it says it’s worked with the society to address findings of various reviews. The ministry didn’t share those reviews, or findings, mind you.

Naturally, we followed up with some questions for the ministry since we’d been told the deficit was due to years of funding reductions, increased costs, increased complexity of need, and the lack of services required by legislation within the funding allocation.

We asked what the shuffling of cards means for KHCAS’ plans to close the Haliburton office and reduce staff effective April 1. The ministry did not answer the question.

We asked if they were doing the same thing with other CASs, since more than half of child welfare agencies in the province were projecting deficits at the end of last fiscal year. The ministry did not respond.

We’ve been told foster families are only getting $50-a-day per child, and that has contributed to the deficit since CASs are being forced to use outside paid resources to house children, that are largely for-profit, and licensed by the ministry. They can cost between $400 and $2,600 a day. How, we inquired, has the province not contributed to the problem?

We also got a ‘background’ on this one to school us on the fact there are two key types of out-of-home care providers in Ontario, with different funding relationships. First is a transfer payment recipient (TPR), which receives direct transfer payments from the ministry and has a contractual agreement to provide out-of-home care to young people. 

The second is an outside paid resource (OPR), which enters into a contract with the caregiver or agency placing the child. OPRs include registered charities, not-for-profits, and for-profit resources which provide services like foster care. OPRs negotiate their contracts and agreements with placing agencies, such as societies. Societies are responsible for identifying a placement for a child admitted to its care that best meets the child’s needs.

We also asked them about a June report from the Financial Accountability Office (FAO) which said the Ford government is underspending on their own commitments to social services by a shocking $3.7 billion. 

Their response? “The FAO’s opinions are not representative of actual government spending as they use a different methodology, including their own analysis and projections of Ontario expenses.” They then went on to tell us how much they spent according to their methodology.

Clearly not enough if what CASs are telling media is to believed. If any confidence has been lost, it’s in the Ford government. 

Minden dentist Bill Kerr, and his late wife, Lisa, were on their way back from Honduras – doing charitable dental work – when they thought their volunteer team should actually be doing something at home.

That thought birthed Volunteer Dental Outreach (VDO) for Haliburton County, which is now into its 14th year.

On May 19, 2011, VDO opened its doors at 739 Mountain St. in Haliburton to fill a need in the Highlands. 

From those humble beginnings, VDO has come a long way thanks to community support, a team of devoted volunteers and dental professionals, and many generous financial contributions.

VDO has remained true to its mission: provide free urgent dental care for low-income residents in the area. 

The clinic’s volunteers have improved the smiles and oral health of 1,582 patients, totalling more than $4.5 million in free dentistry as of Sept. 20. For many, the transformations have been life-changing, giving them the confidence to pursue employment opportunities and live without crippling pain. 

It was largely through the work of Lisa Kerr that a partnership was established with the Haliburton Kawartha Pine Ridge District Health Unit to launch the Ontario Seniors Dental Care Program for Haliburton County. 

October 9, 2024 marked another watershed moment for VDO.

That’s when the board of directors officially responded to the evolving landscape of dental care in Canada – with the federal government’s continuing rollout of the Canada Dental Care Plan (CDCP).

VDO is adjusting its services to better meet community needs in Haliburton County since many low-income residents will now have wide access to affordable dental care, resulting in a decreased patient load at VDO.

As of the new year, VDO will no longer provide dental care through the Ontario Seniors Dental Care Program.

However, it will remain open to provide care to those County residents who do not qualify for the CDCP but meet the qualifications for dental care under VDO’s original mandate.

In light of the changes, the 2025 Lisa Kerr Memorial Golf Tournament fundraising event has been suspended. The board will assess future community needs before making further decisions.

With one-third of clinic patients to disappear as of Jan. 1, 2024 and the CDCP roll-out expected to hit all ages groups in the next calendar year, it is evident the clinic will see a lot fewer people in future. However, with a federal election on the horizon and a change in government possible, VDO is also prudently leaving the door open in case their services will be needed on a larger scale in future.

Ultimately, it is a good news story. The VDO team has been filling a gap that the government should have been providing all along. And while the Lisa Kerr Memorial Golf Tournament is not happening in 2025, there is enough in the fundraising coffers to sustain the Mountain Street clinic going forward.

Bill Kerr is pretty confident his wife wouldn’t mind the decision to shelve her namesake tournament for now. After all, he said she was passionate about ensuring free dental care for those with nowhere else to turn. 

We applaud VDO for its continuing service. The fact it may become obsolete one day because government has finally stepped in is not a bad thing.