Not-For-Profit of the Year!!

On behalf of the Board of Directors of Point in Time Centre for Children, Youth and Their Families, I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate Point in Time and their incredible staff on the recent ‘Best Not For Profit’ Business and Community Achievement Award as presented by the Haliburton Highlands Chamber of Commerce. Words cannot describe how incredibly proud we are! ~ Sandy Adams

The mission of Point in Time Centre for Children, Youth and Parents is to identify needs, provide support and enable residents of our community to function at their highest potential.

When it was identified in 2017 that some of our youth were in crisis, they responded with a serious of Healing to Hope public forums and are working with partners to establish a youth hub in Haliburton.

They’ve done this while continuing with expansive existing and new programming.

Some of the new offerings have included a kindergarten readiness program for Cardiff Elementary School; a Sunshine Circles therapy-play group in schools and childcare centres and an Integra Young Warrior Program for youth aged 9-12, using martial arts as a teaching tool.

The Hurting to Hope session held on Nov 29, 2017 at Haliburton Highlands Secondary School was a follow up to the Youth Suicide Prevention and Wellness session held on Oct 30th at the Halliburton Legion. The Hurting to Hope event was organized in partnership with local service providers, schools, parents and community members. A panel with representatives from providers of local mental healthcare, the Trillium Lakelands District School Board and a provincial expert in youth mental health and suicide were on hand to answer questions and discuss issues related to youth wellness. Panel members available to respond to questions included:
Marg Cox: Executive Director Point in Time Centre for Children, Youth and Parents
Dr Ian Manion: Director of Youth Mental Health Research at the Institute of Mental Health Research at the Royal in Ottawa
Cynthia Weaver: Vice President of Strategic Initiatives with Kinark Child and Family Services
Cheryl Roffe: District Manager of Mental Health Services with Trillium Lakelands District School Board
Dave Jarvis: Director of Adult Mental Health Services for Haliburton

Hurting to Hope Community Event Feedback

Over 120 community members attended the three-hour session and asked over 40 questions! We received 55 feedback forms from participants and here is a summary of what we heard.

What did you find most helpful about this evenings event?

• appreciated the expertise of the panel and the opportunity to hear the questions answered from the different perspectives of panel members
• The event helped us “to hear that this is a community issue and to make positive change it needs to be addressed by the whole community, not just the school”
• Information about services available in our community
• Parents liked the actual strategies given to help start conversations with their youth
• That it was a community conversation

We also asked what the community would like to learn more about. Here is the list:

• Social media, the role in mental health and how we can encourage youth to use it appropriately
• More about the wellness hub planning
• Help with understanding the pathways to care when they need support for their families
• A deeper understanding of the role of school, home and community in addressing bullying across the lifespan
• More education/skills to support youth in distress including support for youth that are helping their friends in distress or with grieving

There were suggestions about the venue/format/length of the event.

• Although he format allowed for lots of questions to be answered, many felt that the next session should be more interactive perhaps using a round table format where community member ideas can be generated
• Although many thought the content was excellent the community is now ready to dive deeper into some of these issues and start to think about potential solutions
• Most felt the session was too long at three hours
• The sound system was a distraction.

Overall the community is very interested in continuing the discussion about how we can come together to support youth wellness in Haliburton.

After months of planning, we’re excited to launch the new Point in Time website!

With new and improved navigation, an events calendar, our news blog, and a new donation section, we have more ways for you to interact with us.

Please have a look around, and check back with us as we will be continually adding new content, news, and upcoming events.

We value your opinion; if you have any comments, or can’t find the information that you are looking for, please leave a comment, or contact us.

As you can read in our mandate, Point In Time provides valuable services to families and individuals all over Haliburton County, helping residents reach their absolute highest potential.

Delivering Both Traditional and Innovative Services

While at times this assistance is delivered in a more established and traditional manner, every so often we have the chance to initiate something that is both extremely helpful and highly innovative. Such is the case with Mindfulness Martial Arts, a unique pilot project done in collaboration with the Integra Foundation and the Trillium Lakelands District School Board.

Mindfulness Martial Arts in Haliburton County

Mindfulness Martial Arts, first adopted by the Haliburton High School in 2014, is the only one programs of its kind in the province. It shows students how to adapt the physical and mental disciplines of martial arts into the daily challenges they might face.

Beginning with techniques that teach the simple art of breathing and how it can help create a calm mental state, participants learn new ways of dealing with occasionally persistent problems. Students also engage in actual physical (but non-combative) martial arts techniques that illustrate how an active body can create a peaceful mind.

The Haliburton version of MMA, which has already proven to be an unqualified success on many levels, has given Point In Time yet another valuable resource to help enrich the lives of so many. We couldn’t be more honoured to have played a key role in bringing this incredibly enriching program to the County.

Watch for yourself!

Point In Time MMA from Sticks and Stones Productions on Vimeo.