YORKTON – SaskAbilities held their third annual Mental Health Conference at the Painted Hand Casino Oct. 10.
The day long event featured speakers JR LaRose, a former athlete of the Canadian Football League, who spoke at length about overcoming an environment of poverty, drugs and abuse. Tyler Smith and Ryan Strashnitzki, both survivors of the tragic Humboldt Broncos bus crash spoke at the event as well as Michelle J.E. Temple, a local author from Saltcoats.
"We are focusing adversity and resiliency," said Jamie Neal, Mental Health Senior Supervisor with SaskAbilities, in an interview with Â鶹´«Ã½AV.ca
Neal said the importance of openly discussing mental health is crucial for the community.
"We definitely recognize the importance of hosting a mental health conference for the fact that we can get everybody under one roof focusing on the topic of mental health, sharing stories, hearing stories and giving them the chance to learn," said Neal, adding, "they might be going through something similiar to their neighbour sitting beside them or the speaker that is on stage ... really bringing that awareness to the forefront."
The conference also featured a panel discussion with locals Scott Musqua and Trevor Morrisey.
