by CONNIE TABBERT
Editor
BEACHBURG — Beachburg Lions Club members recently donated $1,200 to the Robbie Dean Family Counselling Centre. They have been supporting the Centre since they have come to know the difficulty people experiencing a mental health issue encounter when trying to find local help.
Club treasurer Tony Mercier said there is a club member who has a child with mental health issues. Wanting to help the family, as well as others in the community, the club hosted a golf tournament in July with the proceeds going to the Robbie Dean Family Counselling Centre (RDFCC).
This centre provides free mental health services to anyone, said Monique Yashinskie, founder and administrator of the Centre, which was also named after her son.
She recalled that in August 2011, 18-year-old Robbie committed suicide. He was born and raised in Renfrew County, went to Bishop Smith Catholic High School and worked at McDonald’s restaurant.
“He was your average Renfrew County youth,” Ms. Yashinskie said.
At 17 years old, Robbie began showing signs of depression, she recalled. But, knowing the teenage years, she and her husband weren’t too concerned, thinking it was just typical teenage behaviour.
“One day Robbie said he wanted to die,” his mom said. “We knew that was not right and we sought help.
“We couldn’t find help for him here,” she continued. “We went to Ottawa once a week. It meant missing a day of work and for Robbie, missing a day of school.”
After Robbie died, Ms. Yashinskie said it was clear that other families should not have to go through what her family did. She began looking around at what was needed and decided it was walk-in clinics.
“A place was needed for people to go when they are struggling,” she said.
In June 2013, the first Robbie Dean Family Counselling Centre opened. Today, there is an RDFCC in Eganville, Pembroke, Renfrew and Petawawa, each open for a few hours one day a week. Arnprior has a centre that moves around to various locations.
“We mostly deal with the high school (in Arnprior),” she said.
The Centre is supervised by a psychologist and there are professionals on staff, she added.
Renfrew and Pembroke are the busiest centres, averaging upwards of 20 people per clinic each week, she said. The centre can be used for anyone who has a crisis, which can be different for each person, she added.
They are mostly used by people with low to no income, she said.
The Centre does not provide long-term counselling, Ms. Yashinskie said.
“It’s for short-term, critical counselling,” she said. “There are only six to eight sessions. It’s for people who are going through a challenging time.”
However, she added, the same person could have various challenges throughout the year, so can come back for each challenge.
“We give people coping skills to manage their own stress,” she said. “The goal is, hopefully, that they never have to come back.”
Ms. Yashinskie said the Centre also deals with the people who support the person in crisis, or helps find the people the person needs for support. Ms. Yashinskie noted since opening, the centres have helped about one-quarter of the population in Renfrew County, if you take into consideration the people who have walked into the clinics asking for help, and then realize the people who are affected by this person who have received help, such as friends, family, co-workers, and teammates.
She noted there is no government funding for the centres, which means they rely strictly on donations.
The Beachburg Lions Club has donated about $6,000 in the past five years.
For more information on the Robbie Dean Family Counselling Centre, please go to the website www.rdfcc.ca or call 613-635-4715 x 110.
