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Maison Fraternité Breaks Ground on First Residential Drug Treatment Facility for Francophone Youth in Eastern Ontario
Monday, July 4, 2011, Ottawa — Project s.t.e.p. marked a major step forward today as Maison Fraternité broke ground on construction of a residential addiction treatment centre for Francophone youth. The first of its kind in Eastern Ontario, the centre will help young people conquer addictions through counselling, support and treatment on a 24/7 basis. To be housed in a new addition to Maison's Fraternité's existing facilities, the centre will open in late fall this year.
Ottawa Police Chief Vern White, Co-Chair of project s.t.e.p., and the Honourable Mauril Bélanger, MP for Ottawa-Vanier, joined representatives of Maison Fraternité and United Way Ottawa to mark the start of the centre's construction. United Way presented a cheque for $750,000 to Maison Fraternité to cover a significant portion of the capital cost of the project.
“Very soon, Francophone youth in Ottawa will have a place in their own hometown where they can get the help they need to beat their addictions. That’s good news for our community and great news for our young people” said Chief White, the driving force behind project s.t.e.p. “This was a dream for me, and for many others, just three years ago. Maison Fraternité embraced the dream, and their hard work is going to give some of our kids their lives back. I’m honoured to be part of making this happen”.
“Project s.t.e.p. has been an amazing collaborative effort,” added Mauril Bélanger, MP for Ottawa-Vanier. “It is a model for other communities that want to make a positive difference in the lives of young people. I hope we can share what we have learned with the rest of the province and, perhaps the rest of the country.”
According to Michael Allen, President and CEO of United Way Ottawa which manages project s.t.e.p., “in the three years since we launched project s.t.e.p., we have achieved significant progress. We have one centre open for Anglophone youth and another for Francophone youth now on its way. We have doubled education and prevention programming in high schools, and have seen remarkable results for the students involved.”
Project s.t.e.p. partners include Premier McGuinty’s office and the Province of Ontario, the Champlain Local Health Integration Network, Health Canada, the Sens Foundation, the Cowan Foundation, Ottawa’s four school boards, the Ottawa Police Service, Ottawa Public Health, the Royal Ottawa Hospital, Maison Fraternité and the Dave Smith Youth Treatment Centre. Club Richelieu is also a partner in the Maison Fraternité renovations.
About Project s.t.e.p.
Project s.t.e.p. is our community’s response to addressing the need for residential substance abuse treatment, education and prevention for young people. With the support of community partners, local champions and leaders, this campaign will raise the funds needed to support the development of a comprehensive substance abuse education and prevention program in our high schools and provide specialized treatment and counselling in a 24-hour residential setting. s.t.e.p. stands for support • treatment • education • prevention •
For more information about project s.t.e.p., please contact Michael Poliwoda at 613-228-6734 or mpoliwoda@unitedwayottawa.ca, www.project-step.ca
