As we reflect on the past year, change, challenges, and uncertainty have been abundant. Despite being collectively tested in a myriad of ways, we have much to be proud of.
Our principles of compassion, accountability, resilience, initiative, and collaboration have been at the forefront of supporting people who faced impacts from the pandemic, as well as social inequities and injustices. The constructs of health and safety took on all new meanings this past year and were of paramount importance in all aspects of our work.
As we pivoted primarily to virtual service delivery, we also continued to offer vital crisis services in person and in the community so that people in distress could receive the right service at the right time. Staff worked diligently to ensure food security, helped with access to technology, and maintained connections to reduce isolation, while coping with their own stressors.
Uncertainty can breed innovation and we transformed some of the challenges we were experiencing into opportunities. We piloted a Call Diversion response with York Regional Police that proved collaboration helps navigate people to the right service. We upgraded our phone system to enhance both the caller and staff experience at 310-COPE. We offered groups, education sessions and conducted assessments virtually with great success. We engaged in new or deeper partnerships with other agencies. We were successful in obtaining grants to pilot new approaches while continuing to focus on service excellence within our programs.
We communicated, connected, and collaborated with 27,673 people who live with serious mental illness and/or a developmental disability. We helped them develop relationships and connections to their community through our 24/7 crisis support, case management, peer support, and access services. Our aim is to help them, alongside their families and caregivers, achieve their goals and live a fulfilling life.
We were thrilled to receive the Canadian Nonprofit Employer of Choice Award for 2020. It is an honour to be recognized as a non-profit whose people, leadership and vision translate into outstanding talent management practices that support successful mission delivery in the communities we serve.
As an agency, the learnings over the past year were plentiful and with these experiences, we find ourselves poised on the brink of renewal. Our new Strategic Priorities focus on aligning our internal resources to streamline the experience of people we support. We are committed to furthering our diversity, equity, and inclusion work. We plan to embed more virtual service offerings based on promising or evidence-based practice. With our new plan there is much to look forward to in the future.
Finally, we extend our thanks to our staff, our funders, our friends and our communities. It is our privilege to work alongside you as we strive to ensure a meaningful life for all.
