$192,700 OTF Grant Responds to Toronto’s Youth Mental Health Crisis
YES President and CEO Tim Lang, MPP Chris Glover and The Ontario Trillium Foundation come together to connect with youth participating in YES’ Cognitive Behavioural Therapy programming.
$192,700 OTF Grant Responds to Toronto’s Youth Mental Health Crisis
Toronto, ON – On Wednesday, MPP Chris Glover met with the team at Youth Employment Services (YES) to hear more about the work happening with the $192,700 Resilient Communities Fund grant it received the provincial government’s Ontario Trillium Foundation (OTF) in 2023. The two-year long grant is being used to respond to Toronto’s current youth mental health crisis by scaling YES’ initiative to provide Cognitive Behavioural Therapy to vulnerable, unemployed youth.
“The investment by the Ontario Trillium Foundation to support this critical initiative is great news for our community,” said Chris Glover, MPP for Spadina-Fort York. “There are many youths in the community who will benefit from this, and it ensures mental health support in the employment context is accessible for those who need it.”
The project was expanded in June 2023 and has removed financial barriers to accessing this costly treatment for more marginalized youth who are unemployed and living with mental health related challenges. In addition to becoming more equipped to manage their mental health in an employment context, youth will learn how to reframe negative thoughts, build positive mental health habits and practical coping mechanisms. And thanks to the OTF grant, 100 youth will access this critical service through one-on-one and group workshops.
“Non-profit organizations across Ontario, like Youth Employment Services, deliver programming that makes a difference,” said Neil Lumsden, Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport. “That’s why funding that my ministry is providing through the OTF is so important. Our government wants to ensure that these spaces remain the heart of communities across our province.”
“We are doing our part to help youth with barriers of all types and this grant helps us do even more” said Tim Lang, President and CEO of Youth Employment Services YES. “We know youth mental health has been a growing issue and I am so proud of the work YES has done to spring into action and increase our mental health programming”.
Youth Employment Services YES is committed to building its resilience and sustainability through implementing innovative and timely solutions to the ongoing mental health crisis and increased demand for mental health supports within our community.
The Ontario Trillium Foundation’s (OTF) mission is to build healthy and vibrant communities across Ontario. As an agency of the Government of Ontario, and one of Canada’s leading granting foundations, last year, OTF invested over $110M into 1,022 community projects and partnerships. Visit otf.ca to learn more.
