Community Safety and Well-Being Plan

JOINT MUNICIPAL COMMUNITY SAFETY AND WELL BEING PLAN

2021 — 2026

Township of Macdonald, Meredith, and Aberdeen Additional and Township of Laird

MMAA & LAIRD

Contents

Message from Council Acknowledgements Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic

Executive Summary

Introduction….

1.0 Community Safety and Wellbeing Framework 2.0 Municipal Background 3.0 Community Risk 3.1 Violent Crimes 3.2 Property Crimes 3.3 Domestic Disturbances

3.5 Drug Related Occurrences

4.0 Limitations

10.0 Conclusion

COMMUNITY SAFETY WELLBEING PLAN

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MMAA & LAIRD COMMUNITY SAFETY WELLBEING PLAN

Message from Council

Early this year, our councils made it a priority to develop and present this Community Safety and Well-Being Plan (CSWB). Our municipalities embarked on a collaborative initiative to identify solutions to the challenges members of our communities face to improve the overall

quality of life for our residents.

Our main goal is to unite and strive to achieve safety and well-being for all of the Macdonald, Meredith & Aberdeen Additional and Laird communities. Through collaboration

between our community, partners and councils we can strive to achieve these goals.

We as a community pursue engagement and participation, alongside the values of work and living. With many experienced backgrounds, we have a diverse range of abilities and resources within our two municipalities. We are confident that this plan will be beneficial to all persons

and organizations.

Our residents and their needs are our highest priority. The purpose of this plan is to strengthen

our community, increase our assets, and live worry-free.

Council recognizes the predominant risks occurring within our community and spares no effort in acknowledging the supportive actions and precautions that can be made. There are hopes for

this to brighten the problem areas and reduce risk in our townships.

If all members of Macdonald, Meredith and Aberdeen Additional and Laird Townships work

together with their councils, we can successfully improve well-being and create safer place for

all.

Ga Jee CL NW) / Signed: Lynn Watson, Mayor Signed: Richard (Dick) Beitz, Mayor Township of Macdonald, Meredith & Aberdeen Add’l Laird Township

MMAA & LAIRD COMMUNITY SAFETY WELLBEING PLAN

Acknowledgements Thank you for the support from each of the following partners in the creation of this plan:

e,

** Kelly Rowlinson — Child Care Algoma

o,

«“* Nancy McLean — Algoma District Services Administration Board

o,

“* Kristy Harper/Liliana Bressan — Algoma Public Health

o,

“* Scott Purnis/Jason Kennedy — Echo Bay Public School

** Tom Headrick — Township of Macdonald, Meredith and Aberdeen Additional Police Service Board

“* Shelly Bailey — Township of Macdonald, Meredith and Aberdeen Additional Police Service Board

“¢ Jennifer Errington — Clerk, Township of Laird

** Lynne Duguay — Clerk, Township of Macdonald, Meredith and Aberdeen Additional

** Manuela Byrnes — OPP — Detachment Commander, Sault Ste. Marie

0,

“¢ Laurie Graham — OPP — Sargent, Sault Ste. Marie

Thank you to all of the volunteers within the community who assist at our local food banks, service clubs, churches and youth recreation programs.

We would also like to recognize the input and commitment from all the organizations that have contributed to this community safety and well-being plan.

MMAA & LAIRD COMMUNITY SAFETY WELLBEING PLAN

Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic has upended most aspects of daily life in the Township of Macdonald, Meredith and Aberdeen Additional and Laird Township—not to mention globally. A state of emergency was first declared in March 2020 to combat what would soon become a global pandemic. COVID-19 had an immediate and resounding impact in our community. More than one year later, we continue to feel the effects—and will for many years to come. The COVID-19 pandemic has placed unprecedented restrictions on everyday life. Loneliness and feelings of isolation are being felt by many. As the pandemic has unfolded, only some of the potential impacts on community safety and well-being have been realized—including crime, physical and mental health, public safety, security, and risk prevention. The COVID-19 pandemic and accompanying economic disruption will have large-scale effects in areas of social and health determinants, highlighting inequalities in labour markets that have disproportionately affected individuals within priority populations, including those who are marginalized and most vulnerable. Many vulnerable populations in the region have more acutely experienced the economic impacts of the pandemic. Social and economic recovery from the pandemic requires a new tethering of police services to the broader economic logic of social investment. Through

proactive harm reduction and social inclusion, our CSWB Plan can help to advance our recovery.

MMAA & LAIRD COMMUNITY SAFETY WELLBEING PLAN

Executive Summary

The purpose of this community safety and well-being plan is to be able to build on our assets and community strengths in order to improve the health and well-being for all who live in the Township of Macdonald, Meredith and Aberdeen Additional (MMAA) and the Laird Township.

We hope to achieve the ideal state of a sustainable community where everyone is safe, has a sense of belonging, and access to services, and where individuals and families are able to meet their needs for education, health care, food, housing, income, and social and cultural expression.

Under the Sault Ste. Marie Ontario Provincial Police Detachment, the Township of Macdonald, Meredith and Aberdeen Additional and the Township of Laird are the only two organized townships within their jurisdiction. These two communities share resources such as an elementary school, Algoma District Services Administration Board, Algoma Public Health, Volunteer Fire Department, and Police Services.

A collaborative approach will create a strong plan that will address local priorities that are shared between the two municipalities. The key points that will be recognized within this plan are (a) identifying risk factors, (b) determining evidence based strategies to address the risk factors, and (c) determining measureable outcomes to ensure that the strategies implemented are successful at enhancing community safety and wellbeing. Developing strategies that are preventative as opposed to reactive will ensure efficiency, effectiveness, and sustainability of the safety and well-being of our communities.

Our strategies will be developed by assessing and leveraging community strengths and further establishing what resources are available to our communities. Once risks are prioritized, we can identify what outcomes are intended for each risk. From here, we will create measureable and achievable outcomes based on these resources.

The two most common risks recognized within our two communities are property crimes and domestic disturbances. Other offences that have needed police involvement in the Township of Macdonald, Meredith and Aberdeen Additional and the Township of Laird are violent crimes, drug related occurrences,and mental health and family disputes. The data from 2017-2019 provides us with a visualization of the spike in property crimes that occurred in 2018. This was the most significant issue within our municipalities over these three years of recorded police involvement. Instead of issuing more law enforcement, our community desires to invest in prevention and draw more focus to youth opportunity. This will assist in creating a safer, more supportive, and welcoming community.

MMAA & LAIRD COMMUNITY SAFETY WELLBEING PLAN

2.0 Municipal Background

The Township of MMAA is comprised of a rural setting, cottage area, and the village of Echo Bay being the hub of the community. This includes multiple parks, Sportsplex arena, boardwalk, bird viewing, recreational

Introduction

Under the Police Services Act, it has been regulated that all municipalities must have a Community Safety and Well Being Plan (CSWP) in place and must be adopted by council as of July 2021. This framework adheres to the collaboration between several different stakeholders to identify and prioritize risk factors within our

fields, a local business area, community halls, lending library, museum, an elementary school and daycare.

community and determine how we can The Township of Laird is primarily rural with successfully minimize these risks and the Hamlet of Bar River. They provide an provide our residents with a safer outdoor rink, Laird Fairgrounds, Laird community. Raceway, recreational fields, bird viewing,

parks and a museum.

1.0 Community Safety and Well

These two townships have a combined

Being Framework population of 2656 citizens. About 65% of The Community Safety and Well-Being Plan our population consists of those between is designed to assess our current issues the ages of 15-64. Our youngest generation recognized within our municipalities. From comprises less than 17% and the eldest is 2017-2019 there were 311 reported near with almost 18%. The average age in offences to the OPP within our communities MMAA is 42.1 years old while Laird under the sections of violent crimes, averages 43.7 years of age.

property crimes, domestic disturbances, drug related occurrences, mental health occurrences, and family disputes. With knowledge of these statistics, we can create a plan to prevent and control these incidents from occurring within our jurisdiction. From conclusions of a survey poll, it was determined that Canadians prefer to invest in prevention and education instead of more law enforcement and punishment. This statement is significant in our municipalities where our citizens appreciate the joint effort from one another to limit these actions and disturbances.

The majority of our population has received post-secondary education or higher. Less than 8% of residents have no certificate. We have a mainly English speaking population, with just over 6% being both English and French speaking. Over 70% of residents in Laird and MMAA are of European origin and 11.3% are of Aboriginal descent. In addition, 3.9% of our residents are immigrants and only 0.8% are of a visible minority. *

* Statistics Canada, 2016 Census of Population.

MMAA & LAIRD COMMUNITY SAFETY WELLBEING PLAN

3.2 Property Crimes

3.0 Community Risks The largest portion of our municipalities’ Within recent years, the village of Echo Bay offences is property crimes. The OPP dealt has shown a consistent level of crime

related offences. Some situations have required more police involvement, which allows us to conclude that we as a community need to improve our prevention initiatives.

with 166 occurrences of property crimes over three years’ time, averaging 27 property crimes per annum. In 2020, the average dropped to 20 property crimes. This is a 26% decrease in property crimes and shows promising data that provides optimism for the continuation of reducing

3.1 Violent Crimes our community’s property crime rate.

In our community from 2017-2019, we

averaged approximately 14 violent crimes Supporting Actions:

requiring OPP response annually. This > Continued investment in youth statistic shows no significant increase or opportunities and programming decrease, and fluctuations can be attributed > Public Education

to random variation. It is also possible that

these acts could be linked to rising concerns 3.3 Domestic Disturbances

with substance abuse and/or mental illness within the community. This is reason enough to focus on these issues and provide assistance and resources for mental health and substance abuse.

Another highlighted issue within our townships is domestic violence. We experienced 59 occurrences from 2017- 2019 for an average of 20 occurrences per annum. The data shows an increase in these Supporting Actions: offences, and is becoming more of a

concern in our community. > Provide information and access to upstream mental health resources Domestic violence is identified as violence

and supports for mental wellness. in intimate relationships, including those > Provide information and access to between the opposite-sex and same-sex rehabilitation/treatment facilities. partners. Relationships vary in duration and > Continue to invest in youth legal formality and encompass current and opportunities and programming for former dating partners, common-law, and a sense of community engagement married couples. Although both women and belonging, and mental health men can be victims of domestic violence, development. the overwhelming majority of domestic

> Provide public education on the violence involves men abusing women.

determinants of violent crimes and Domestic violence crimes are often strategies for prevention committed in a context where there is a

pattern of assaultive and controlling behaviour. This violence can involve physical assault, and emotional,

MMAA & LAIRD COMMUNITY SAFETY WELLBEING PLAN

psychological, and sexual abuse. It can also family services to strengthen families and include threats to harm past or present communities through:

partners, children, other family members,

pets, and property. Violence is used to » Prevention

> Early intervention, and

> Finding more permanent homes for children and youth in care when they cannot stay in their own homes

or communities

intimidate, humiliate, or frighten victims, or to make them feel powerless. Domestic violence may include a single act of abuse or several acts, which may appear minor or trivial when viewed in isolation, but collectively form a pattern that amounts to 3 A Mental Health abuse. Exposure to violence and experiences of abuse can lead to poor physical and mental health outcomes and potentially lead to injury or even death. An intersection of individual, family, community, and societal factors can influence whether an individual experiences family violence. For example, a history of child abuse or neglect, substance abuse, family conflict, poverty, and gender norms can all contribute to the risk of family violence.”

Over three years the Ontario Provincial Police responded to 17 mental health related occurrences in the Macdonald, Meredith and Aberdeen Additional and Laird Townships. This seems to be a rising concern amongst our communities. In light of the COVID-19 pandemic with distanced learning and remote working, children and adults have been exposed to an unprecedented increase in screen time, and reduced in-person involvement. This has been a large contributing factor for poor Supporting Actions: mental health for individual’s nation-wide. In Canada, 1in 5 youth struggle with mental health. For those that experience mental health challenges, 70% are onset in childhood. This is why positive social deterrents in life are so important. Early life experience, education history, race, sexual

> Increase the understanding and awareness of domestic and family violence as an issue

> Accept and Support “The vision for Child Welfare in Ontario”

Ontario is building a child and family orientation and many other factors are services system that ensures more families significant to one’s mental health.* Growing stay together and that children and youth in up with social and cultural expectations can care have the support they need to be safe, carry large amounts of stress on an

succeed and thrive. The child welfare individual to meet these points or to redesign focuses on transforming child and express themselves in their own way. In the

adult class, aspects such as food insecurity, poor working conditions or unemployment,

? Government of Canada. (2016). The Chief Public and discrimination can have a severe Health Officer’s report on the state of public health

in Canada 2016 – A focus on family violence in * Mental Health. (2021). Canadian Mental Health Canada Association.

MMAA & LAIRD COMMUNITY SAFETY WELLBEING PLAN

negative impact on one’s mental health as well. By the time Canadians reach 40 years of age, studies have shown that 1 in 2 have or have had a mental illness.

It can be a surprise to some that up to 30% of Ontarians aged 65+ have a mental health issue, even though young people aged 15 to 24 are more likely to experience mental illness and/or substance abuse disorders than any other age group. In Ontario 48% of high school students indicate a moderate or serious level of anxiety and depression. People with a mental illness are twice as likely to have a substance abuse problem compared to the general population. At least 20% of people with a mental illness have a co-occurring substance abuse problem. Similarly, people with substance abuse problems are up to three times more likely to have a mental illness, leading to 15% of people with a substance abuse problem have a co-occurring mental illness. This is the reason that those with mental illness and addictions are more likely to die prematurely than the general population.

Canadians in the lowest income group are three to four times more likely than those in the highest income group to report poor to fair mental health. Mental illness is a leading cause of disability in Canada. While mental illnesses account for 10% of the burden of disease in Ontario, it only receives 7% of health care dollars. The mental health care in Ontario is underfunded by nearly $1.5 billion. The Mental Health Strategy for Canada recommends raising the proportion of health spending that is devoted to mental health to 9% by 2022. The economic burden of mental illness in Canada is estimated at

$51 billion per year. This includes health care costs, lost productivity, and reductions in quality of life. Of Canadians aged 15 and older who report having a mental health care need in the past year, one third state that their needs were not fully met. An estimated 75% of children with mental disorders do not access specialized treatment services. Wait times for counselling and therapy can be long, especially for children and youth. In Ontario, wait times of six months to one year are common.

In any given week, at least 500,000

employed Canadians are unable to work due to mental health problems. This risk can reduce income and lead to poverty.’

We need better access for individuals facing mental health challenges. Additionally, we should focus on maintaining a warm and welcoming environment and sense of community for our youth to thrive by providing them with multiple opportunities for participation, employment, advice and care.

Supporting Actions:

> Educate the public to reduce the stigma surrounding mental health and make it a welcoming and safe community for all

> Improve access to mental health and addiction services by supporting the efforts in Sault Ste. Marie for a recently approved expansion of Residential Withdrawal

‘Mental Illness and Addiction: Facts and Statistics. (2021). CAMH.

MMAA & LAIRD COMMUNITY SAFETY WELLBEING PLAN

Management & Safe Beds services in Sault Ste. Marie.

> Continue investing in recreational and youth opportunities in our community

> Provide mental health resources information to all community members.

3.6 Drug Related Occurrences Algoma Public Health had reported an increase of opioid-related harms in the region. In 2020, an arrest was made for a crime in our region for a manslaughter charge in relation to an opioid overdose. This is part of the ripple effect that comes as a result of the ongoing opiate crisis occurring in our neighboring city of Sault Ste. Marie. The highest rates of opioid mortality since the pandemic are those in Northern Ontario including Sault Ste. Marie. In 2019 the opioid-related death rate was 14.9 per 100,000 and in 2020 the rate increased to 46.5 per 100,000 (APH). The economic cost of substance use in Canada in 2014 was $38.4 billion. This includes costs related to healthcare, criminal justice and lost productivity. Elements of health, poverty, lack of secure housing, and occupational issues amongst others are significant reasons that there has been an increase in substance abuse in this area.

By supporting the City of Sault Ste. Marie in their effort to battle the opiate crisis we can proactively try to prevent and reduce the ripple effect of drug related crime and offences from spreading into our rural municipalities. Between the Township of Macdonald, Meredith and Aberdeen Additional and Township of Laird

municipalities, there have only been two drug related occurrences requiring police involvement over these three years. While there is evidence of miniscule drug related issues within our community, we cannot ignore the fact that the issue is still actively occurring and by proactively combating drug use and crime, we can positively affect our community.

Supporting Actions:

> Educate the public about naloxone and make naloxone more accessible

> Improve access to mental health and addiction services by supporting the efforts in Sault Ste. Marie for a recently approved expansion of Residential Withdrawal Management & Safe Beds services in Sault Ste. Marie.

> Continue investing in recreational and youth opportunities in our community

4.0 Limitations

Not all experienced risks have been covered in this plan due to the limited amount of consultation in the community in result from the COVID-19 pandemic measures. The majority of this plan covers information on those in the working age group, limiting the child population. By focusing on early childhood support and education, we hope this will lead to better statistics for the labour force in later years. If we cannot focus on children to develop into positive adults, our community will not benefit.

MMAA & LAIRD COMMUNITY SAFETY WELLBEING PLAN

5.0 Strategic Plan effective crime prevention, we can reduce

In this generation of technology and growing crime sustainably by as much as 50%.

equality, mental health has become an

important focus for all persons. If we target this, 7.0 Youth Services

we Can increase our sustainability and assist in The Township of Macdonald, Meredith and increased quality of life. Another big area to Aberdeen Additional and the Township of target will be to establish community programs, Laird have been very active communities

safe spaces, and to provide hotline information

and provide many new opportunities for all. to assist with family and domestic disputes, and

coping with trauma. In the summer months, we offer summer

camps at an affordable rate for kids to be 6.0 Municipal Funding able to socialize, learn new skills, and stay Interpersonal crime does $55 billion in active. Along with these summer camps, we harm to citizens annually. The total harm to provide a summer reading program every Canadian victims of crime suggests that week free of charge. This is a great tangible losses such as property loss, wages, opportunity for all families to be able to and costs of health care are close to $10 bring their children out without having to billion each year. Intangible losses such as decide on giving them these experiences or pain, suffering, and loss of quality of life due putting food on their table. For low-income to trauma of crime result in nearly $45 families, these decisions can be difficult on billion, which is equivalent to 2% of both the parents and the children.

Canada’s GDP. The annual budget in the Township of Macdonald, Meredith and Aberdeen Additional for municipal policing is $304.81 per citizen or $157.04 per household per year and $267.75 per citizen or $139.79 per household in the Township

For ages 3 and up we also offer affordable baseball and soccer programs. As an active community, most parents like to see their kids enjoy the same things that they did when they were growing up. The village of Echo Bay has always had friendly

or tare competition when it came to sports and we Through a survey, 60% of Canadians have developed many great athletes who preferred to control crime through find pride in their sporting

investments in education and crime accomplishments, whether it is at the prevention rather than police, lawyers, and elementary school or high school level, or if jails. Currently, the costs of policing has they go on to further their abilities. Having doubled to 13.5 billion since 2000, rising access to these team events and by

43% above inflation. We utilize 200 officers coaching our youth we can positively

per 100,000 residents and 60% of this cost influence a child’s mental and physical

is paid by municipalities. If we invest the health, as well as their behaviors and equivalent of 10% of what we currently demeanor as they grow. This provides our spend on policing, courts, and corrections in youth with something to focus on and look

forward to in a healthy and positive way, as

MMAA & LAIRD COMMUNITY SAFETY WELLBEING PLAN

opposed to being isolated, feeling detached and backgrounds. It is a great way to

from their community, or partaking in promote activeness, friendships, and overall harmful health and social behaviors. healthy lifestyles.

Our municipalities also provide the Since we are such a small rural community, opportunity for adults to participate in it is not feasible to provide every single baseball leagues at our local Echo Bay Elk’s amenity that can be found in larger cities. Lodge recreation fields. This provides a However with continued investment we can sense of belonging to people in our continue to provide a sense of community community and the feeling of being and a warm, welcoming, and a safe place to welcome. It is something to look forward to live, work and play.

each week and assists in alleviating stress

after a long workweek. Offering 8.0 Poverty

recreational activities for people of all ages Some areas highlighted as a necessary area plays a significant role in the social, mental of CSWB plan focus are housing, food

and physical health of residents in our security, and workforce entry. These community. attributes in our townships have been

noticed and we are commencing the

Collectively our municipalities and – ; development of beneficial resolutions.

community partners have worked together to provide a number of recreational! activities to members of our communities. The Echo Bay Elks Lodge has invested in a new baseball fields, as well as new playground equipment in their park. Both municipalities have continually invested in their recreational infrastructure such as their parks and arena. These continued investments have been widely welcomed by those in our community, as it provides a safe and pleasurable opportunity for participation, which encourages and assists with overall health, both physical and

8.1 Workforce Entry

We have a working population of 2211 persons. Among this group the unemployment rate is 8.7%, while 62% are in participation and 56.1% are employed. Our working class varies between full time and part time workers in fields of all variety. The majority of our citizens travel to work in another town or city such as Sault Ste. Marie. As a small rural town, we have few available places of employment within our business sector.

mental. Although the majority of persons must travel for work, it does not appear to be an issue within our community for residents to be able to find employment. For those with obstacles involving travel or family commitments, our town’s business sector includes a gas station, restaurants, post office, municipal businesses, hair dressers,

Another new addition that is being developed in the Macdonald, Meredith and Aberdeen Municipality is a new multi-use outdoor sports facility with three separate recreational courts. This Sport Court can be utilized in many different ways to fit the desires of all people, of all ages, abilities

MMAA & LAIRD COMMUNITY SAFETY WELLBEING PLAN

bakery, hardware store, farming supply The Township of Laird has analyzed that store and recreation. These provide great 3.8% of the population spend more than opportunity for summer students starting 30% income on housing. In Macdonald,

out in the labour force, co-op placements Meredith and Aberdeen Additional we

for students, as well as part-time and full- conclude that 12.5% must spend more than time positions for those interested. 30% of their income on housing. Laird does

not have many renting opportunities for housing whereas Macdonald has apartments and houses for tenants, as well as two Algoma District Service and Administration Board owned seniors complexes and seven Ontario Aboriginal Housing Services units. This poses a limitation for some citizens who cannot afford to own a home, but do not have

Between the Township of Laird and the Township of Macdonald, Meredith and Aberdeen Additional, the average after-tax income that residents receive is approximately $38,000. For those who work full time, the average amount is $59,000. This closely reflects the average salary one will receive’as a worker across Canada.

In our working age group, there are 6.8% of access to other options. Currently 58.5% of individuals classified under low-income residents utilize mortgages in the payment after taxes. With 8.7% of our labour force of their homes. It is not evident at this time population currently unemployed, we can that there are any persons experiencing conclude that majority of our employed homelessness within our municipalities.

citizens have a beneficial and livable wage. Supporting Actions: . . Supporting Actions: > Raise awareness of the living wage to our local businesses and recognize employers who have adopted the living wage rate of pay, which is currently $16.16/hour > Continue to provide summer

> Work in collaboration with Ontario’s Housing Supply Action plan and amend municipal by-laws to allow for second dwelling units, i.e. tiny homes, granny flats, in-law suites,

was etc. employment opportunities to the ; ; . . > Continue supporting our Algoma youth in our community. ” _ ; : District Services Administration > Educate members of our community

Board with our two senior’s

about employment assistance complexes.

programs available to them.

8.3 Food Security

All individuals have unique circumstances and some may find they have more expenses than they do income. A solution we gathered from this information and sought for need included the establishment

8.2 Housing Concerning housing, 100% of dwelling distribution in Laird is single-house, while Macdonald, Meredith and Aberdeen Additional contains 92.4% single-house, 6.8% other attached, and 0.8% movable.

MMAA & LAIRD COMMUNITY SAFETY WELLBEING PLAN

of a community food bank. This food bank is entirely confidential and is there to be utilized for any and all in need. Our community comes together as a whole to make donations and volunteer their time at the food bank to be able to provide our residents in need with food, beverages, and toiletries. Harvest Algoma provides us with fresh deliveries each week to ensure there is a plentiful stock of fresh foods inthe food bank. We create family and singles bins consisting of non-perishable items as well as fresh fruit, vegetables, milk, bread, eggs, and anything else that may have been delivered or donated. These resources have been greatly beneficial to our community and our citizens in times of need. We also have Meals on Wheels through Dr. Trefry Centre that provides meals for anyone recuperating on a short or long-term basis, those over 60 and those with limiting disabilities. We collaborate with Child Care Algoma to provide “Kids Can Cook” programs and Community Crockpot Kitchens, all of which offers families the opportunity to learn how to make nutritious meals that will save time and money. While enjoying a delicious crockpot supper parents will have the opportunity to discuss topics such as food safety, healthy meal menus choices, family budgeting and dealing with a picky eater. Following supper, families will prepare a meal to take home and enjoy. Crockpots will be provided to those families who do not have one. Older children are encouraged to participate in the cooking experience.

Supporting Actions:

> Expand community food bank hours of operation as needed.

S

> Increase community awareness about our food security, and educational resources we have available.

> Communicate with Laird residents

that they are also able to access the

Echo Bay and Area Food Bank

located in the Macdonald Township.

9.0 Education and Awareness

As a community, we need to inform residents with accurate knowledge on these problematic situations that have been acknowledged. The highest priority will be to reduce stigma around mental health disorders and substance use and how they are linked to income, housing, and food security. It will also be important to educate on the impacts of social determinants of mental health, as well as the health and social implications of substance use disorders and mental health.

We strive to maintain a high rate of employment and opportunity within our community alongside creating healthy environments and positive atmospheres for all.

MMAA & LAIRD COMMUNITY SAFETY WELLBEING PLAN

10.0 Conclusion

The Townships of Macdonald, Meredith & Aberdeen Additional and The Township of Laird’s joint Community Safety and Well- Being Plan requires the coordinated efforts of all community stakeholders to ensure that the plan is responsive to the prevailing and developing social and economic risks facing our community members. The Community Safety and Wellbeing Plan is a working document that will be subject to regular review by our communities and stakeholders. The inherent variations and emerging social risks facing communities today reiterate the need for regular and adaptation to our CSWP.

MMAA & LAIRD COMMUNITY SAFETY WELLBEING PLAN

Local Resource Contact Numbers:

FOR EMERGENCY – CALL 911

Sault Area Hospital – 705-759-3434

Sault Area Hospital Crisis – 705-759-3398

Sault Ste. Marie City Police – 705-949-6300

Sault Ste. Marie O.P.P. — 705-945-6833

Algoma Public Health — 705-942-4646

Wellness Checks Withdrawal Management -(Detox) – SAH- 705-942-1872 Addictions Treatment Clinic -123 East Street 705-759-6684

H.A.R.P. HIV/AIDS Resource Program- 705-759-5690

OAHAS — Ontario Aboriginal HIV/AIDS Strategy – 705-822-8910

Pauline’s Place – 705-759-4663

St Vincent – 705-253-2770 ext. 200

Woman In Crisis – 705-759-1230

Crisis Shelter Rankin – 705-941-9054 John Howard Society – 705-759-1703

OATC – 705-759-8080

Echo Bay United Church Echo Bay and Area Foodbank — 705-248-2891 Township of Macdonald, Meredith & Aberdeen Additional — 705-248-2441

Township of Laird — 705-248-2395