I am relieved to report that many of my colleagues on Regional Council were convinced – whether by personal stories or by the evidence – to vote in favour of constructing barriers on a piece of infrastructure where we’ve seen six deaths in as many months.

Continue reading “Not every solution is a good one” →

Tonight, Regional Council decided in a 23-4 vote to install barriers on a piece of infrastructure where the community has been impacted by six deaths in as many months. Continue reading “Mental health barriers – the finale (I hope)” →

It should come as no surprise at all that I have strong opinions about the state of mental health care in Niagara (and beyond) and some of the ways in which we can assist members of our community who are living with mental health concerns. Continue reading “Mental health barriers – part two” →

When I was 15 years old, I swallowed nearly 100 extra-strength Tylenol capsules. In those moments, I wanted nothing more than for the years of pain to stop. And this was the only way I knew to make that happen.

Little did I know that overdosing on Tylenol didn’t mean I would pass out and not wake up. It meant I would die a slow and excruciatingly painful death, as the Tylenol destroyed my liver. Continue reading “Mental Health Barriers” →

When one is running for a position on their local municipal or regional council, it is difficult to make campaign promises. You can’t say that you will absolutely accomplish x, y, or z, as you have to rely on a majority of the rest of that Council agreeing with you in order to achieve your goal.

That said, one can promise to work on specific issues to bring them forward in an effort to achieve a particular result.

Continue reading “Meetings, expenses, and the code of conduct…oh my” →