Support continues to grow in OPSEU campaign to Save Thistletown

The coalition wants the Minister of Children and Youth Services to meet with Thistletown parents as a group, make public a detailed plan for transition and commit to long-term funding to replicate Thistletown’s services. 

Toronto (03 July 2012) - Opposition to the planned closure of a renowned mental health facility continues to grow in Ontario. An increasing number of parents, community members and workers are joining public events to hike public awareness and pressure the Ontario government to reverse the decision.

Thistletown Regional Centre is a place of last resort for hard-to-treat cases turned away by hospitals and community agencies. The closure would leave more than 400 families without treatment for children with mental health problems and developmental disabilities, such as extreme autism.

Supporters walked together in the Autism Speaks Walk, appeared at a Thistletown family barbeque and rallied outside a fundraiser for Eric Hoskins, Ontario’s Minister of Children and Youth Services.

Members of the public were shocked to learn from conversations and leaflets that Thistletown is slated to close over a two-year period starting this fall with no plan for existing clients and without full disclosure to those affected. Many signed the petition to keep Thistletown open and asked what they could do to help.

Save Thistletown activists organize at community events to keep treatment centre open.

Members of the Ontario Public Service Employees Union's (OPSEU/NUPGE) Greater Toronto Area Council took leaflets and petitions to the public outside the $500-per-person Hoskins fundraiser at a posh hotel on Toronto’s Bloor St. Joining them was Nancy Pridham, a nurse at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, and an OPSEU/NUPGE Executive Board Member.

At the autism walk, a coalition member approached Kathleen Wynne, Minister of Housing and Aboriginal Affairs and asked her to tell Minister Hoskins that the families are waiting for a meeting with him.

Information for 400 day-treatment and 15 residential clients and their families has been piecemeal. The coalition wants Hoskins to meet with Thistletown parents as a group, make public a detailed plan for transition, and commit to long-term funding to replicate Thistletown’s services.

NUPGE

The National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE) is one of Canada's largest labour organizations with over 340,000 members. Our mission is to improve the lives of working families and to build a stronger Canada by ensuring our common wealth is used for the common good. NUPGE