The Community Support Centre of Essex County (CSC) are celebrating a $600,000 grant.
The CSC received the grant through the Ontario Trillium Foundation, and will be used to support the expansion of Windsor-Essex Compassion Care Community (WECCC), a community-based initiative led by the CSC.
This funding supports the expansion and delivery of WECCC programs across Windsor-Essex in partnership with the Windsor Essex Community Housing Corporation.
The program mobilizes trained volunteers to work alongside seniors to self-assess their social, mental, and physical well-being, set goals, and identify gaps in supports.
Andrew Dowie, Windsor-Tecumseh MPP, says often seniors just need someone to talk to.
"A program like this one really opens that door, and allows for those that don't have someone to speak to just to keep life going well. They have a conduit to engaging, and having some fun with their friends, and learning about new people, and what's out there."
Deborah Sattler, WECCC Program Manager, says it's important for the community to mobilize around these individuals.
"We've tested out the model in a few different settings already... hospice, and as part of community support services just generally. This gives us the opportunity to move out into the community, and community housing buildings - where people live - outside of services, and bring the community supports directly to them."
Sattler says it's important to have these lasting relationships with available supports.
"Ultimately, we know that people are going to decline in health and face additional challenges and barriers... just because of life. But we want them to be able to live with dignity, to feel like they're having a good quality of life, to feel like there's help out there."
The initiative is an ongoing program of CSC since 2021, and started back in 2017.
The CSC is a non-profit organization that provides quality health and community services.
-with files from CTV Windsor's Gary Archibald