The Annex, the addictions resource centre and outreach program of the Grace Café, is dedicated to helping individuals access addiction services, programs and supports.We last wrote about the Talbot Street facility two years ago this month on the occasion of its first anniversary.
The goal of The Annex is to positively impact the lives of individuals facing the many challenges of substance dependency.
It does this through addiction support groups, substance abuse resources and addiction counselling.
In a safe, compassionate, and non-judgmental environment.
We caught up with Executive Director Mike Toth this week, on the third anniversary of The Annex, the brainchild of Ginny and Don Trepanier.
Seated in the comfortable lounge area at the front door, Toth honestly observed, “We haven’t worked ourselves out of a job yet.”
He continued, “There’s still a large need in St. Thomas for addictions and recovery support, obviously for mental health as well, because they usually go hand in hand.
“So yeah, we’ve been here for three years. We’ve been trying to help the City of St. Thomas. We’ve seen some really good successes and obviously some heartbreaks as well. But, we’re hoping to be here as long as we’re needed.”
Toth has generous praise for the efforts of city staff in dealing with homelessness and housing efforts in partnership with organizations like Indwell.“You know, St. Thomas has done an incredible job of building housing, and they continue to do it and have led the way in southwestern Ontario.
“But housing isn’t enough. So what we need to do as well is to focus on both recovery and the mental health issues in order to try to truly serve our folks.”
Equally important is the provision of housing with social supports.
“And it’s not simply to support people using drugs in a safer fashion,” stressed Toth.
“A lot of the folks that we have in these housing situations and who are using drugs would have been in institutions decades ago, where they would have at least had meals provided. They would have gotten the psychotropic medication that’s required to help treat their mental health issues.
“And so they’ve been left out on the street to treat things for themselves. So we have to expand what we mean by supports in order to truly serve them.
“So we have to realize that we can treat folks, but we’re not going to fix everybody. And so we need to be committed to treating those members of our society who are not able to fix themselves.”
“Life skills are an important part, there’s no doubt. But the fact is that some of our community will not ever get to the point of being self-supportive. It’s just not going to happen, and it’s always been that way.”
The conversation turned to the old St. Thomas Psychiatric Hospital.
“All you have to do is start driving toward Port Stanley, and you see the legacy of a bygone era where we had folks here in St. Thomas in a massive hospital.
“So we have to realize that we can treat folks, but we’re not going to fix everybody. And so we need to be committed to treating those members of our society who are not able to fix themselves.”
Toth turned to a personal example to illustrate the point.
“I mean, I loved basketball, but there was no way I was going to be an NBA star, right? And it actually does extrapolate out in that way as well with folks who have suffered from trauma, who have real-life issues, that some of them are not going to get to the point of fitting into, quote-unquote, normal society, whatever that looks like.
“Drug use is not, even though the people call it partying, people aren’t looking to pleasure seek when it comes to their drug use. They’re looking to avoid pain.
“So the drugs themselves are a solution. They’re not the problem. Now, obviously, they’re not a good solution, but they’re a solution to the best of someone’s ability to take care of what’s going on under that life problem that’s underneath.
“And that’s what we try to do, is try to help people put together a plan where we can address those life problems, those life issues, to where they can have a better life that doesn’t have to involve drugs.”
Toth agreed there are a variety of reasons why individuals turn to drugs.
“And that’s what we kind of forget, is that there’s no four- or five-year-old kid that starts out as, quote, an addict. You know, when we see our kids in first grade, nobody grows up wanting to be an addict.
“And so these are folks that we grew up with, there are brothers and sisters. As you have said, there are many different reasons why people become dependent. And we have to be responsive to those different reasons for each individual.”
So what has the acceptance been over the three years since opening its door?
“I was taking a look at a few of the statistics today, and over those three years, we’ve had 352 new clients come in. And we’ve had over 2,200 kept appointments.
“So not scheduled appointments, but appointments that were actually kept because it’s difficult for folks to make it in for appointments for many, many, many reasons.
“We’ve had some folks that have been with us for a year, a year-and-a-half, two years before they get to the point of being ready to go into recovery. And we’re okay with that.
“We’re here at the street level for a reason. And we’re trying to provide a service that fits into a niche that maybe other people aren’t meeting.”
The conversation returned to the city’s efforts in homelessness and housing.
“Now again, I celebrate St. Thomas and all the housing. I would never argue that we don’t do housing. But it could be easy for us to just put people into those places and ignore them from there.
“When you get to the point knowing that we’re more pain-driven than we are pleasure-driven, when the pain of quitting is lower than the pain of continuing to use, that’s when people are ready for success.”
“And so we don’t see the problem, so the problem doesn’t exist. So that’s my hope is that we will continue to push forward as a community to continue to get our community members to get the help that they need in order to progress as far as they can.”
So what is Toth’s wish list moving forward?
“One of my biggest wishes is what we call pre-treatment, okay? It’s not done in Ontario for the most part. So the difficulty that we have is when someone decides, ‘I’ve got a problem.’
“Until the point that they’re actually able to get into treatment, it is sometimes two to three months.
“If you have someone who decides they have a problem and you say, yes, we’ll help you, and you send them right back into the place where they’ve been using, where they’ve been abused, their sobriety is not going to last. None of us would last.
“So, a pre-treatment facility would be one where someone makes a decision and they start applying to different treatment centres, a sober living environment that they could go to and would get some supports in order to try to maintain that sobriety level until they’re able to get into a treatment program.
“So I see that as huge. It would be huge for the hospitals because we would lower people going into the ER. I think it would be huge for social services, and it would be huge for our commitment to sobriety.
“And so there’s just that gap in supports in Ontario that I’d love to see get closed to where we could support people through those early places. And again, continue to support people as they fall, they get back up, fall, get back up.
“And that’s what we try to do here, is we just walk with folks on their path as long as they’re willing to be with us, at their pace.”
And then comes the a-ha moment.
“You know, the folks who I see that are most successful or have the greatest chance for success are those for whom the pain of using becomes greater than the pain of quitting.
“When you get to the point knowing that we’re more pain-driven than we are pleasure-driven, when the pain of quitting is lower than the pain of continuing to use, that’s when people are ready for success.
“And that’s why we want to be able to have that period where we could support them to help make sure that they can actually get that success.”
In other words, it’s a path of least resistance.
“Absolutely. Yeah. You want to try to remove as many rocks in the road for people as possible. And that’s what we do here.”
In wrapping up the conversation, Toth made a point of stressing, “We love the City of St. Thomas and celebrate it because of the different churches and different social organizations, different agencies work together so much better than in many other places, that it’s been a model.
“And obviously, as you well know, we haven’t arrived yet. However, really moving in some good directions. And I hope and pray that we continue to move in those good directions.”
You can access the addiction resource centre at 519-896-0080 or drop in at 321 Talbot Street.
CANADA DAY CELEBRATION
The city’s sports complex at 1Password Park is the envy of communities across southwestern Ontario.
And for one day each year, it becomes the Canada Day hub for city residents.
We spoke this week with Mayor Joe Preston about the move to 1Password from Pinafore Park and the events planned for Canada Day on Tuesday.
“We always had quite an issue at Pinafore Park with the parking, especially with the number of people who had to park off-site. And we had to hold cars back and let the pedestrians leave. And 1Password makes that a lot easier.”
As for the fireworks display, Preston added, “It also allows us to have a lot more spectacular fireworks show, because as Pinafore grows in its canopy (tree coverage) and the nearby houses, under certain conditions and certainly with any wind at all, we can’t hold the type of spectacular fireworks display that we can hold at 1Password.”
The aerial illuminations begin at dusk; however, there are plenty of activities for the entire family beginning at 4 p.m., including barbecue offerings from the St. Thomas Kinsmen and the Optimist Club.
They’ll be joined by the staff at Why Not Cookies Cafe with their food options.
Preston also pointed out, “Let’s not forget we have a snack bar at 1Password Park and he’s going to do pretty good on Canada Day.
“It’s always a fun day to see people you haven’t seen in a while and spend the day celebrating the birth of our country.”
Of particular interest will be the K-9 unit of the St. Thomas Police Service, which will showcase its prowess in a demonstration at 5 p.m.
“Part of the demonstration is showing how well they can close the gap between a suspect and themselves,” noted Preston, “and then how far those dogs can travel, even in the air. It’s great to see.”
Preston politely declined when asked if he would suit up and be the target.
A wise decision.
There will be live music with John Milles beginning at 5 p.m., followed by opening remarks and serving up free ice cream cake, courtesy of The Ice Box.
A full schedule of events can be found at the city’s home page, stthomas.ca, under the Canada Day banner.
COMING UP NEXT WEEK
The city always proclaims it is open for business; however, one city resident is fearful she is about to be negatively impacted or possibly have to shut down her seasonal business.
For two decades, she has provided swimming lessons for youngsters in her backyard pool – with nary a negative word from neighbours – and now a bylaw complaint has her at odds with city hall.
The solution, according to city staff, is to seek a zoning bylaw amendment, which will set her back about $1,500.
Yet her neighbourhood is zoned for a variety of undertakings, including a home-based business, and certainly, her pool is not the issue.
Ironically, the city recently approved a flotation device bylaw to prevent drownings like the tragic incident last fall at Lake Margaret.
And she is doing her part by teaching children to swim and practice water safety.
Surely the issue can’t be noise. Five or six youngsters in the water during the day being taught by her can’t be any noisier than if she invited grandchildren and their friends over for a fun day in the pool.
And how is a zoning amendment going to alter the situation?
More to come next week.
FOR THE CALENDAR
This summer, the St. Thomas Police Service has a variety of free, family-friendly events planned.
According to the media release from Communications Coordinator Samantha Wakefield, 
“These initiatives are designed to bring our community together, support our youth and families, and create positive connections between officers and the public.”
“These initiatives are designed to bring our community together, support our youth and families, and create positive connections between officers and the public.”The lineup kicks off Saturday, July 6, with a Chief of Police and Community Inclusion Council barbecue in Pinafore Park.
The free barbecue is focused on welcoming newcomers and celebrating diversity in St. Thomas.
Families are invited to enjoy kids’ activities, a free lunch, and the chance to connect with the police service and the Community Inclusion Council.
THE ECHO CHAMBER
In response to our item last week on short-term rentals and a call from Coun. Steve Peters, for a staff report, Kevin Smith posted the following observation on the City Scope Facebook page.
“Kudos to Steve Peters for bringing up the issue of short-term rentals in neighbourhoods. Having one of these units on my street was one of the reasons I decided to sell my house back in 2022.
“It was a nice, quiet street for over 20 years until a neighbour decided to turn the top half of her home into a rental B&B. She was a nice lady who bought the house with her boyfriend a year earlier, but he ended up passing away, and she couldn’t afford the home on her own. Thus, the BNB was created so she could continue living there.
“I don’t blame her for doing so. However, it was annoying when you were sitting on the deck wanting peace, quiet and privacy, but then you had people gawking at you, making way too much noise, who didn’t care because they were there for only one night.
“Maybe I should have complained, but I didn’t think it would be cool to rat her out.”
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And a reminder, I can be heard weekday afternoons as news anchor and reporter on 94.1 myFM in St. Thomas. As always, your comments and input are appreciated.
