On behalf of Drew Burgwin;
I am writing to inform you about Respect Forum-a national multisectoral networking initiative that seeks to improve the well-being of Canada’s military veterans and retired first responders (e.g., police, firefighters, paramedics). In its fight against such phenomena as PTSD and homelessness, Respect Forum brings together a wide range of people—from health and social services, universities, community organizations, and veteran peer support organizations—to promote collaboration. In other words, we believe that through collaborative service delivery, knowledge development, knowledge transfer, and community engagement we can improve services for Canada’s veterans, retired first responders, and their families.
Headquartered in Montréal, by-invitation-only Respect Forum meetings have been held semi-annually in this city since the fall of 2016. Respect Forum expanded to six other cities in 2018 (Calgary, Edmonton, Ottawa, Toronto, Vancouver and Victoria), and is set to expand again in 2019. With support from Veterans Affairs Canada’s Veteran and Family Well-Being Fund, meetings are now set to be held twice a year in 19 cities across Canada in March and April.
A meeting will be held in Saskatoon on March 29 (8:00 – 12:00). You can see more information about Respect Forum via the link in the signature block below. The meetings are generally four hours in duration and include informative presentations, and small and whole-group discussions to identify challenges and explore possible synergies and areas of collaboration. We conclude with a summary of the proceedings from these discussions and next steps.
In the coming weeks we will be inviting people from organizations involved with research, outreach and services dedicated to helping veterans and first responders suffering from mental health and/or homelessness in your area. I will be in touch again closer to the meeting date with times and venue.
In closing, I hope I have captured your attention regarding this initiative and invite you to share the above information with members of community engaged in relevant areas of service provision. I will be happy to respond to any expressions of interest in Respect Forum.
Very Best Regards
Drew Burgwin
Western Coordinator, Respect Forum
www.respectcanada.org
(250) 588-7934
drew@respectcanada.org