HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2018-04-05, Page 11PAGE 12.THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, APRIL 5, 2018.
Foundation struck to challenge addiction, mental health
Telling the story
Heather and John Steffler have taken the tragedy of their
son Tanner's passing to try and address the need for
support for mental health and addiction in Huron County.
The couple, above at the Brussels Optimist Club spring
dinner and auction last month, created the Tanner Steffler
Foundation to improve the support in Huron. (File photo)
By Shawn Loughlin
The Citizen
After only a few months, the
Seaforth-based Tanner Steffler
Foundation is working towards
improving the mental health and
addiction services in Huron County.
Nineteen -year-old Tanner Steffler
died after a drug overdose on June 6
last year and just a few months after
his untimely death his parents, John
and Heather, were working hard to
create a foundation in his name.
The foundation first reached out to
Huron County Council for funding
last October, just over four months
after Tanner's untimely death. In just
six months, the Stefflers, and a
number of passionate volunteers
dedicating their time to the cause,
have built the foundation into one of
the county's most visible charities.
Numerous International Plowing
Match (IPM) committee chairs
chose the Tanner Steffler Foundation
as their charity of choice, donating
their share of the match proceeds to
the newly -established foundation.
The organization has also hosted
mental wellness information nights
and is bringing mental health
awareness advocate Michael
Landsberg to Blyth this May for a
pair of events that have already
proven extremely popular.
The foundation has also been the
subject of a number of fundraisers.
The Huron East Centenaires raised
funds for the foundation on their
special hockey night earlier this year
and the Blyth Lions Club has
dedicated its Blyth Festival Bonanza
weekend breakfast proceeds to the
charity this summer.
In seeking a donation from Huron
County Council, the Stefflers said
that their son desperately tried to
seek help close to home, but couldn't
access it for a variety of reasons.
"In Huron County, access to
mental health and addiction
resources for youth are limited at
best," the foundation's letter to the
county read. "Throughout Tanner's
struggle with substance use disorder
we know he tried desperately to
access support that would help him
overcome his illness. Tanner didn't
want to become an addict; he wanted
treatment and he wanted to be well."
The Stefflers went on to say that
while the medical system couldn't
help Tanner, neither could the school
or justice systems, leaving him
without options.
After Tanner's death, others
reached out to John and Heather to
share similar stories of struggle.
They said that many of the stories
shared a common theme, that the
youth of Huron County need access
to better services.
"Repeatedly, stories told of the
lack of immediate access to services,
short-term treatment centres with no
follow-up care, youth being shuffled
from one provider to another, long
wait lists and doors being closed
repeatedly," the Stefflers said in
correspondence with Huron County
Council.
The goal of the foundation is to
support youth between the ages of
12 and 24, as well as their families,
with issues surrounding mental
health and addiction through
education, development of a web -
based service for youth and,
eventually, building and sustaining a
youth mental health and addiction
treatment and wellness centre.
According to the Rotman School
of Management at the University of
Toronto's recent social return on
investment analysis, there is a $34
return on every dollar spent for
centres like the one the foundation
wants to build in Huron County.
And although the dollar amount
per individual could be measured in
the millions, according to the
foundation, John and Heather say
that the return for families like theirs
will be priceless.
At a November meeting of Huron
County Council, John and Heather
presented the foundation's vision to
council. While the local government
went on to turn down funding, the
foundation's volunteers have
persisted and continued their work.
John presented the foundation's
mission statement to councillors at
their Nov. 15, 2017 meeting, saying
it will be their goal to support Huron
County youth and create a culture
for youth in the area to help them
combat mental health, addiction and
wellness concerns.
"We will educate parents,
caregivers, community members and
politicians through advocacy and
presentations within the
municipalities of Huron County," he
said. "We will work with the
separate and public boards of
education so that appropriate mental
health and addiction specialists are
able to work within each school on a
full-time basis to support student
needs."
Furthermore, John said that the
foundation hopes to engage a youth
council that will provide voice and
direction to support the needs of the
youth. Then, the foundation hopes to
establish concrete resources for
youth who feel they may need
them.
"We will create a website and
mobile application specific to our
youth that will provide local
resources, media releases, education
by way of videos, podcasts, blogs
and online chats with trained mental
health specialists," he said. "We will
build and sustain an evidence -based
youth addiction treatment and
mental health resource and wellness
facility in Huron County for our
youth and their families."
As for the status of programming
in Huron County, John said that
further to the fact that there are no
treatment beds in the area, the
nearest communities aren't equipped
to handle Huron County youth in
need either.
There are fewer than 200 youth
treatment beds available in Ontario,
none of which are in Huron County,
John said.
He said that one in five youth in
Ontario will experience a mental
health problem, but that five in six of
those will not receive the treatment
they need.
"Youth who seek help in Huron
County are often sent to London,
where they are put on long wait lists
for services or turned away because
it's a postal code -driven service."
John also cited further statistics
that showed the need for further
resources in Huron County. He said
that 70 per cent of overdose deaths
are related to prescription
medication (not necessarily
medication prescribed to the
individual). Thirty per cent of deaths
investigated by the Huron County
OPP are related to overdoses and 25
per cent of those emergencies
involve victims under the age of 20.
In addition, four out of five 911 calls
are related to mental health.
John said that because of Huron
County's spread -out population,
compared to concentrated
populations in city centres like
Toronto, the county has to take care
of its own children. It will never
make financial sense for the
province to install these services, so
the county and individual citizens
and businesses need to take the lead.
Honouring Tanner
The Huron East Centenaires hosted a special fundraising
event in Seaforth earlier this year honouring Tanner Steffler,
whose passing led to the creation of the Tanner Steffler
Foundation, and Rebecca Kipfer-Pryce who passed away
last year fighting neuroblastoma. Above, Tanner's parents
Heather, centre, and John, right, attend the event while
Mary Paige St. Onge sings the national anthem. (File photo)
In addition to the two Michael
Landsberg speaking engagements in
Blyth on May 3, the foundation's
volunteers are also working on the
inaugural Six -String Music Festival,
set for July 21 in Seaforth.
For more information, visit
tannerstefflerfoundation.com.
Let us Wash Your Winter Coats
Blyth Laundromat
191 Westmoreland St., Blyth
519-523-9687
YR p
1968 - 2018
51st Annual
Belmore Maple Syrup Festival
Thursday, April
• Senior's Day
- Pancakes served
9:OOam - 3:OOpm
• Craft show
All are welcome!
12th Saturday, April 14th
• Pancakes served
8:30am - 6:30pm
• Craft show
. Age of Majority Dance
Featuring: Galley West
9:OOpm - 1:OOam
For tickets contact:
Lindsay (519) 327-8573
or Jean (519) 357-2308
Meal Prices
Adults $10.00
Children 6 - 11 years $5.00
Children 5 and under FREE
Entertainment
• Step dancing
• Baked goods
• Pork products booth
• Maple syrup
products booth
Lots of maple syrup and pancakes
with a serving of sausage and a beverage are included with your meal.
All events are held in the Belmore Community Centre
Admission to the building is free.
General Information : Deanne (519) 335-3748 or Evelyn (519) 392-6095