2016 / 2017 Annual Report
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Dedicated to improving the quality of life for persons living with Epilepsy “Volunteers are the heart and soul of our agency... “It is because of the 2016 / 2017 dedicated commitment to volunteerism and ANNUAL REPORT fundraising initiatives that we all succeed and grow September 16th, 2017 within our local communities” Table of Contents Table of Contents 1 About Epilepsy South Central Ontario 1 A Letter from Our CEO 2 A Letter from Our Board President 3 2016 / 2017 Board of Directors 3 2016 / 2017 Staff 4 Purple Gala 2018 5 Statement of Operations Year End April 30th, 2017 6 The Many Faces of...Epilepsy South Central Ontario 7-8 The H. O.P.E. Award 2016-2017 9 Volunteers 2016-2017 10 2016 / 2017 Year-at-a-Glance 11 2017 / 2018 Proposed Year-at-a-Glance 12 Corporate, Grant and Foundations 13 Sponsors, Partners and Supporters 14 Location & Contact Information Back Cover About Epilepsy South Central Ontario Our Mission Epilepsy South Central Ontario is dedicated to enhancing the quality of life for people living with seizure disorders through counseling and support services. Our Vision Increasing public awareness via outreach, individual/family counseling and working with select forums, Epilepsy South Central Ontario strives to educate and encourage understanding within our community. Our Values Equality and mutual respect of all individuals, Fostering successful, fulfilling lives for families and persons living with epilepsy, To encourage everyone to attain positive solutions when challenged, To conduct ourselves in a supportive, non-judgmental manner with all members and participants. Page 1 Our most significant change in the 2017 fiscal year is the new name Epilepsy South Central Ontario as a result of our expanded coverage area to A Letter from our CEO Kitchener-Waterloo Guelph, Dufferin & Wellington Counties. It was appropriate to change our name to reflect this expansion and we now cover a population of nearly 4 million, making us one of the largest Epilepsy agencies in Canada with population and geography combined. My role is largely to bring in the funding for our expanding programs and services provided at the agency with a dedicated, committed and qualified Cynthia Milburn staff. I also hold other positions that expand our horizons, resources and hopes to a larger scale provincially, federally and internationally. CEO Together with Epilepsy Ontario we are seeking larger scale funding to support the Clinic To Community program model we are currently piloting in our area, gathering data to support the critical need for families to receive community support immediately following diagnosis. The Canadian Epilepsy Alliance (CEA) is the national organization of grass roots epilepsy agencies supporting epilepsy patients in the community. As Treasurer of the CEA, I have the opportunity to meet monthly by telephone and annually in person to share ideas, concerns and resources with my colleagues across the country ultimately benefiting the work we do at the community level. Neurological Health Charities Canada (NHCC) is a coalition of organizations that represent people with brain diseases, disorders and injuries in Canada. As the “Epilepsy” representative for the CEA I participate in advocacy days at Parliament Hill with MP’s and policy makers; The NHCC recommends the Government of Canada to commit to developing a National Action Plan for brain health. A partnership we continue to build is with Matthew’s Friends Canada, dedicated to the ketogenic diet therapies for epilepsy treatment in Children and Adults. Our growth continues to be steady and stable and we endeavor to continue to improve quality of life for those living with epilepsy and their families. Page 2 A Letter from our Board President 2016-2017 was a year of great growth for the organization. With the addition of the Waterloo-Wellington service area to our responsibilities we’ve changed our name to Epilepsy South Central Ontario (ESCO). We now serve a population of 3.7 million, over 1 out of 4 Ontarians. Every day 5 people in our service area are given the diagnosis of epilepsy. Estimates Jim Cheesman vary but there are 35,000 to 40,000 people living with epilepsy to whom Board President ESCO is tasked with giving support. Epilepsy support organizations across Canada continue to be seriously underfunded given the benefits they are capable of delivering. Volunteers play a large role in enabling these organizations to do so much with so little. ESCO is no exception and on behalf of the Board I want to thank the small army of volunteers for their efforts, be they involved in fundraising, epilepsy awareness events or peer/mentoring support. In Ontario, epilepsy support organizations such as ours are being written into the epilepsy treatment guidelines. It is my hope that this will be accompanied by an appropriate level of funding. On behalf of the Board, I want to recognize and thank the staff for their exceptional efforts and commitment to the cause. Those living with epilepsy in south central Ontario are very fortunate to have a team of their calibre to support them. Since our last Annual General Meeting, 3 Board members have resigned: Carolynne Shipp, Jan Rodman and Ernie Cavallin. My thanks to each of them for their service. We have also added 2 new Board members: Sarah Mitchell from the Hamilton area and Tejal Patel from Kitchener-Waterloo. Welcome to you both. 2016 / 2017 Board of Directors Ernie Cavallin Jan Rodman Eduard Bercovici Betty Franklin Secretary Treasurer Director Director Michael McHugh Sarah Mitchell Tejal Patel Kim Seidl Director Director Director Director Page 3 2016 / 2017 Epilepsy South Central Ontario Staff David Charchalis, SSW Chief Operating Officer—Halton Peel Hamilton Jennifer Lyon Chief Operating Officer - K.W. Guelph Errol Chapman Finance Nicole Palmieri, B.A., SSW Community Engagement and Program Manager Jasmine Morante, BSW Social Worker, Client Services Manager Andrea Dent Youth Services Manager Trevor Gordon Media Relations Manager Epilepsy South Central Ontario maintains an emphasis on the needs of the epilepsy community while gaining ground creating awareness and building our profile. Each year we have consistently made a larger impact and for that we are to accredit our dedicated staff, board and volunteers who together were steadfast in unity to fulfill the Mission, Vision and Goals of EpilepsySCO. Page 4 The 6th Annual Purple Gala 2018 Saturday March 31st, 2018 We will be celebrating our 10th Anniversary! For more information regarding The 6th Annual Purple Gala, please send an email to: [email protected] A few faces from the Purple Carpet at the 2017 Purple Gala “Hollywood Glamour” Page 5 2016-2017 Statement of Operations Bruce G. Drysdale , C.P.A., C.A. Page 6 The many faces of... Page 7 Page 8 The 2016-2017 H.O.P.E Award The Caroline Cunningham Foundation CARE-ALIVE The H.O.P.E. Award is presented to an individual or group who has made an outstanding commitment to improving the quality of life for people with Epilepsy. Care-Alive™ (The Caroline Cunningham Foundation for Epilepsy) was started by Caroline’s family and friends in 2009, after her death from SUDEP (Sudden Unexplained Death in Epilepsy) in 2007, at the age of 32. The goals of the foundation are to care for those living with epilepsy by providing support for individuals and their families and to raise awareness of both Epilepsy and SUDEP. Care-Alive has been supporting Sunny Days Camp since 2010. It is because of this support, and the support from the Purple Gala that we are able to continue Sunny Days Camp, giving the kids an amazing summer of learning, bonding, building, laughing. Most recently, through the very generous donation to our Youth Empowerment Program, we are pleased to announce The Caroline Cunningham Epilepsy Centre for Youth and Young Adults. Page 9 Volunteering Epilepsy South Central Ontario 2016-2017 We once again had over 225 volunteers working our Annual Charity Gift Wrap at Shoppers World Brampton and Conestoga Mall. We returned to Oakville Ribfest, Brantford Ribfest, Mosaic Festival, Port Credit Buskerfest. We were present at Volunteer Fairs across our region spreading awareness and education. We had volunteers working at The 2016 Purple Gala, Zehr’s Awarness Month (provincial initiative), Sobey’s for Epilepsy, Wings Up 4 Epilepsy, . We participated for our 7th year at the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon. New awareness events for volunteers are being created in the K-W Guelph region. Special thanks to the Board of Directors who donate their time and energy everyday, without question, without hesitation. Your dedication and support is what helps us move forward to care for those who need our support. Page 10 2016—2017 Year-at-a-Glance MAY 2016 JUNE JULY AUGUST Disability Access Springfest Seniors Event Sunny Days Camp Sunny Days Camp & BBQ Toronto Convention Centre Brampton Mississauga Mississauga Connections Resource Fair Healthy Living Expo Mississauga Ribfest Joseph Brand Davy Festival Mississauga Convention Cen- Square One Celebration Square Hamilton tre Oakville Ribfest Mississauga Multicultural Brantford Ribfest 55+ Info Fair Sheridan College Festival Brantford Shuttlecock Park Garden City Brampton Mississauga Epilepsy Ontario Retreat Port Credit Buskerfest Mississauga Mosaic Festival Celebration Square SEPTEMBER OCTOBER NOVEMBER DECEMBER Family & Youth Retreat 2016 EHPH AGM Gift Wrap Supervisor Gift Wrap Ancaster Head Office—Mississauga Training Shoppers World Brampton EHPH Office Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Gift