YARMOUTH, N.S. — TINA COMEAU
TRI-COUNTY VANGUARD
On the wall next to the coffee bar, beneath the ‘Today’s Menu’ sign, were three simple words: Hope is free.
That feeling of hope certainly resonated throughout the room on the day a new mental health walk-in centre was officially opened in Yarmouth.
Brenda Martin-Hurlburt, the centre’s founder, came to Yarmouth almost 28 years ago as a young, single parent searching for a new start.
“Yarmouth was a welcoming and amazing community. Sometimes I think we forget what small-town fellowship truly represents. I’m a strong believer it takes a community to raise a child and I saw that here,” she said. “During my battle to recovery and working through grief and loss, I vowed if I ever survived that, I wanted to help others navigate advocacy to finding and being the best version of themselves they can be.”
From that dream, comes the opening of this mental health walk-in centre for Yarmouth, thanks in large part, Martin-Hurlburt said, to an amazing team of volunteers who have worked endlessly to make this happen.
“I am honored to officially open Tri County Mental Health and Wellness. We are striving to provide individual coaching and support, recovery group programs, wellness workshops, community education, suicide prevention and awareness and stigma reduction,” she said during the Oct. 10 official opening, which was also World Mental Health Day.
“We still have a long way to go, but we are further ahead today than we were yesterday. Through community collaboration and support, we can strengthen our community and be a leader in community wellness,” she said.
Another special event on this same day at the centre’s 101 Water St. location was the launch of the Aidaen Mae Wellness Room.
THE AIDAEN MAE WELLNESS ROOM
Aidaen Mae Mitchell died in February at the age of 14. Her parents Kelly and Scott have partnered with Martin to provide a safe and supportive environment within the walk-in centre for youth aged 12 to 15 where these young people can come in, hang out and know that they have options for their mental health struggles.
“I believe that people need love and hope. Hope is the key to helping people find meaningful and fulfilling lives as they see it,” Martin-Hurlburt said. “Hope is changing the way we view people who have struggles we don’t understand and finding some compassion. Hope is a vision for a tomorrow with less suffering than we had today. Hope is finding the small sliver of a silver lining we hang on to.”
Kelly Mitchell said if there is anything she has come to realize over the past number of months, and in the days leading up to launch of the wellness room named after her daughter, it’s this: “If I’m strong enough for this, I’m strong enough for anything.”
Yet while the room bears her daughter’s name, and also her loving and bubbly personality, she said this really isn’t about Aidaen.
“This isn’t going to bring her back. It’s in her memory but this is about the kids in the community that need this,” the mother said. “And we couldn’t have done this without the community’s support. It’s been absolutely amazing.”
Aidaen’s parents are also training to become peer supporters for parents.
“The kids can come in here and have a spot to come that keeps them alive another day,” Mitchell said. “And the parents can come here and get the knowledge and support they need and they’re taking that home to their families, so we’re strengthening the entire family.”
Mitchell sees this peer support as just starting to blossom.
“If I can help out in Digby, I’ll be in Digby. If I can help out in Shelburne, I’ll be in Shelburne,” she said, noting, “We are here on donations. We are here on volunteers. We are not here on any government funding, but I strongly believe that we could do the whole thing with only that if we ever had to.”
For more information about Tri County Mental Health and Wellness visit its Facebook page and also their website www.embracingwellness.ca. You can visit their 101 Water St. location in Yarmouth and/or call 902-742-4358. There are also appointment times available.
COMMUNITY SUPPORT
Martin-Hurlburt said organizations, businesses and individuals – and it’s a long list – have all been very supportive of the facility and aiding in its opening.
“I would like to thank our Tri County automotive dealerships who are participating in the Paving the Way to Wellness Campaign that provides the facility for us to operate out of,” she noted, in addition to other community thanks.
She also extended thanks to the board and members of Tri County Mental Health and Wellness: Alissa Dean, president; Shannon Trask, vice-president; Denise Muise, treasurer, Becky Cosman, secretary and board members Beth Weltner, Gerald Pinch, Sandy Cranton, Lynette Hayward-Byrd, Mandy Deveau, Robert Levesque and Brittany Stoddard.
The centre will be open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. and the Aidaen Mae Wellness Room will be open from 3-8 p.m. Monday to Thursday and 3-9 p.m. on Fridays . Martin-Hurlburt says the goal of the centre is to also eventually offer weekend coverage.
Martin-Hurlburt adds a message she is trying to get out is that talking isn’t a solution if no one is listening. “And talking doesn’t help if we don’t do something,” she said.
At the opening she also read member statements about the centre that Yarmouth MLA Zach Churchill introduced in the Nova Scotia Legislature. She was thrilled for that provincial recognition.
And, of course, she thanked the Mitchells, who offered their thanks in return.
“If it wasn’t for Brenda we wouldn’t be standing here today, because we’d know we want to do it, we’d know there was a need, but she’s the one who actually allowed us to know it was okay for us to do this,” said Kelly Mitchell, her voice breaking with emotion.
“We’re supporting youth 12-15, that’s the age range that we focused on because that’s where it’s needed at the moment,” she said about the goal of the Aidaen Mae Wellness Room. “Yes, there’s many more needs out there and other age groups that need it, but by the time you get 16, 17, your personality is getting pretty much developed. We want to get our hands on these kids when we can affect them the most.”
“If the Aidaen Mae room needs to be bigger, it will be bigger. If there’s funding for that or not, it will be what the kids need it to be,” she added. “I would like to see the Aidaen Mae Wellness Room become the Aidaen Mae Wellness House. I would love to see this giant purple house right in the middle of Yarmouth with blinking lights in every window. And if I can do that, it’ll be there.”
