Sundre Call to Action

The Call to Action Steering Committee is a dedicated group of approximately 12 community members representing a varied cross-section of backgrounds. The Steering Committee includes the Call to Action Program Coordinator, the Executive Director of GNP, Alberta Health Services employees, Family School Wellness workers from the local schools, members from local businesses, a Town of Sundre representative, and other community members. The Steering Committee was first created in February 2012 by citizens who were concerned about the suicide rate and mental health of people in Sundre and the surrounding area. Feedback was gathered at a community forum and the group was born as a means to address concerns and create some action. The Steering Committee gathered and analyzed the data collected at the Community Forum and from that data came a guiding principle for Call to Action: “We believe in the value of each individual and their place within our community.” Five priorities were also established: -Creating an exchange of views -Researching needs in terms of addictions -Celebrating individuality -Connecting and learning healthy relationships -Fostering coping skills The Steering Committee continued to meet monthly and planned events and programs that fell under the Guiding Principle and met the goals of the Five Priorities. Marita Stermann (Executive Director for GNP) applied for grants and received enough funding to hire a Call to Action Program Coordinator as well as funds to support many of the programs and events planned. The Call to Action Program Coordinator was hired and another community meeting was planned for February 2013. The Re-Call to Action Meeting gathered community members together, informed the community about the Steering Committee’s efforts over the past year and provided a brief introduction to the many programs and events in the works. Community members were encouraged to give feedback, brainstorm ideas and sign up to volunteer for any of the programs/events that interested them. Nearly 50 people attended the meeting and 21 volunteer feedback forms were collected. Members of the Steering Committee volunteered to organize sub-committees. Each sub-committee plans and organizes a different program/event. The volunteers recruited at the Re-Call to Action meeting were organized into the sub-committees and the Steering Committee members “in charge of” each sub-committee were given the volunteers’ contact information. The Sundre Call to Action office is located in the Greenwood Neighbourhood Place (GNP) office space at #5, 310 Centre Street N, Box 1846, Sundre, Alberta, T0M 1X0. Call to Action operates under the umbrella of Greenwood Neighbourhood Place and therefore adheres to the policies and procedures of GNP. The Program Coordinator can be reached at the office in person, by telephone at 403-638-1011, by fax at 403-638-1012, or by email at info@mygnp.org .