A cheque for $40,000 was recently presented by Pacific Coastal Airlines to The Source Club Society in Powell River. The Source Club is a non-profit organization that provides pre-vocational and social services to individuals with mental illness.
In the 1980s, psychiatrist Peter Uhlmann and a team of health-care providers saw a need in Powell River for a safe and welcoming place where patients could socialize and acquire some skills.
“There was a stigma around mental health,” said Uhlmann. “Some of the chronic patients had nothing to do. We said, ‘Let’s get some kind of a program for them.’”
At the same time, the team heard about a clubhouse model that was being implemented in other cities and towns. People with significant mental health issues had a place where they could go.
“They could get meals there, they could learn how to cook the meals, they could learn skills and they could have work projects,” said Uhlmann.
As a result of their efforts and Powell River Employment Program Society, The Source Club was created.
Each year since 1995, Pacific Coastal Airlines, owned by the Smith family, has held a golf tournament to benefit the club.
“My brother Sheldon, who died, was running the golf tournament within the family,” said Neville Smith, one of the airline’s shareholders. “When he died, they weren’t sure if they’d carry on with it, but they did.”
Since his passing in 2007, the tournament has continued as The Source Club’s largest source of funding.
In the first year of the tournament, only $3,000 was raised. More than 20 years later, that number is up to $40,000. Vancouver Coastal Health also funds about $30,000 for the club’s programs. The non-profit society’s annual expenses are approximately $90,000.
The donation from Pacific Coastal keeps the lights on at the clubhouse, according to vocational skills trainer Sasha Pugsley.
“We’re on the front lines for Powell River people who don’t really have a place in society or aren’t able to hold a full-time job,” said Pugsley. “It’s a place that members can feel worthy.”
Various programs are offered in vocational skills training, including cooking, that enable members of the club to gain employment in the community.
Currently, approximately 70 people use The Source Club. It is a closed membership for people who have gone through a mental health screening process. The location of the clubhouse is kept confidential for privacy reasons. About 20 members come through the door on a daily basis, according to Pugsley.
“It is a safe space because everyone is mental health and addiction clients, but there’s not active users here,” said Pugsley. “There’s no aggression here. It’s a really safe spot for people to come.”
In 1991, the clubhouse moved from the old hospital into the former credit union building in Townsite. That was the same year members began providing food services at Food for Thought Café inside Vancouver Island University. The program still runs today.
In 2000, PREP purchased a house in Westview, where The Source Club is currently located.
It took convincing to get neighbours to accept the club, according to board chair and City of Powell River councillor Maggie Hathaway.
“We’ve tried really hard to take the stigma out of mental illness” said Hathaway. “When we were first planning the clubhouse where it is now, the whole neighbourhood came out not wanting it there. We had a public hearing and we listened to all of their input. It was a ‘not in my neighbourhood thing’ and then a woman got up and said, ‘I’ve lived in this neighbourhood for 20 years and I have a mental illness.’”
According to Hathaway, there has not been a complaint since The Source moved into the area.
