Joe Amero brings depth of lived experience to harm reduction in Toronto shelter system

Posted on June 17, 2022June 17, 2022 by Colin Burrowes

This is the final feature in a three-part series diving into aspects of the opioid pandemic, the overdose crisis, whatever you wish to call it. It is a public health crisis which became exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to Canada’s Public Health database, there was a 95 percent increase in apparent opioid toxicity deaths from April 2020 to March 2021, with a total of 7,224 deaths, compared to 3,711 deaths from April 2019 to March 2020. Since then, deaths have remained high.

These statistics were published in March 2022 and only went as far as September 2021, but by that point, 5,368 apparent opioid toxicity deaths had occurred. This is approximately 20 deaths per day. For a similar timeframe in the years before the pandemic, there were between 7 in 2016 and 12 in 2018 deaths per day.

Drug User Liberation Front saves lives by distributing clean meth, cocaine and heroin

Posted on June 16, 2022June 16, 2022 by Colin Burrowes

This is the first feature in a three-part series diving into aspects of the opioid pandemic, the overdose crisis, whatever you wish to call it. It is a public health crisis which became exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

MAPH continues fundraising for Ukrainian refugee flights and settlement

Posted on May 1, 2022 by Colin Burrowes

Ukrainian refugees sponsored by the Multicultural Association of Perth-Huron have started to arrive in the region, and donations are still being solicited to help with settlement and flights.

If my talent can help you, don’t let your stories fade away

Posted on April 29, 2022April 29, 2022 by Colin Burrowes

I ended up walking away from my job on Valentine’s Day. How romantic was that? In the days before my resignation, it was announced that I would be receiving more awards for my writing. It was just a matter of waiting until April 29th to find out if I would get first, second or third place awards. Well, today was that day, and the Ontario Community Newspaper Association announced that Drrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrum-roll, please?

UPlift Black continues positive advocacy regardless of racist, homophobic cyber attack

Posted on March 14, 2022March 14, 2022 by Colin Burrowes

During a March 7 speaking engagement for International Women’s Day, Shelly Skinner, founder and president of UPlift Black, was interrupted by a racist, homophobic cyber attack.

UPlift Black is a grassroots social service agency with an overall mission to uplift the lives of the Black community in Simcoe County and beyond.

Feline Friends Network continues mission to humanely reduce cat homelessness

Posted on March 12, 2022March 13, 2022 by Colin Burrowes

Since Feline Friends Network was founded in 2006 to reduce the problems of cat overpopulation and homelessness humanely, it has helped at least 3,352 cats get spayed and neutered.

“That’s the reason Feline Friends started,” said Sharon Morrice, president of Feline Friends Network. “It was started by someone volunteering at the Ontario Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals shelter at the time. She could see there was a big, big problem with cats – more cats coming in than dogs, so she thought, why aren’t we working on the root cause of this and that is that cats multiply at such a high rate.”

Multicultural Association kicks off fundraising for Ukrainian refugees at Revival House

Posted on March 11, 2022March 16, 2022 by Colin Burrowes

The Multicultural Association of Perth Huron (MAPH) has kicked off their fundraising efforts to support Ukrainian refugees who will soon be arriving in Perth and Huron Counties with a dinner at Revival House in Stratford on March 10.

The war in Ukraine touched the event as the main speaker had to cancel because her mother, a Ukrainian nurse, was injured in a Russian attack on a Ukrainian hospital.

Couple asking Listowel residents to stand by Ukraine with donations of emergency supplies

Posted on March 1, 2022March 15, 2022 by Colin Burrowes

A Listowel couple who immigrated from Ukraine to Canada a few years ago is spearheading a campaign to gather emergency supplies to send back to their home country. Anastasia and Igor Stadnik have asked It Takes a Village to help collect donations to aid Ukrainian refugees and those defending their country against the Russian invasion.