Thunder Bay

June 30

Today was an amazing day for us. We were invited out for lunch. Maurice Fortin, Executive Director of the CMHA Thunder Bay invited us for a visit and to tour their facilities. New Foundations Clubhouse members put on the lunch. Although it was a big deal for us (a nice change from peanut butter and banan sandwiches) it was no biggie for them as lunches and special occasion meals are a regular occurance. They cater too. It was a perfect meal to fuel Mel on his ride. The Clubhouse is a program where members can receive support in the areas of education, employment, housing support, advocacy, crisis and social recreation. Jason led us on the tour. Ralph, one of the members, shared with us that when he first started here he was totally computer illiterate and in a few short years has become a pro. To demonstrate it took him about 5 minutes to whip up a flyer and print it in colour. Was that a Xerox printer?.
Bye-the-way Gord, Brenda says "Hi", Clubhouse to Clubhouse.
New Foundation Clubhouse is only one of many valuable and diverse programs run by the CMHA in Thunder Bay. We were also treated to an inside look at the crisis line phone room. 807-346-8282.
Lindsay and Mel wanted to be sure to look their best for an interview that Ken, our PR manager in Thunder Bay had arranged for later. Turns out Shane Judge of CBC Radio was more interested in the sound. Shane had them outside in the rain so he could capture the authentic sounds. He even had Mel run through a puddle a couple of times.