Eastern Branch
Eastern Branch includes Ottawa, Cornwall, and the Eastern Ontario region.
Branch Directors and Executive
Barbara Merriam, President (barbarai.merriam@gmail.com)
Glenn Drover, Past President/Treasurer (gdrover@dal.com)
Margaret Nelson, Chair, Social Justice Committee (margn@magma.ca)
Laurie Alphonse, Membership Committee (laurie.alphonse@gmail.com)
Martha Wiebe, Carleton University Representative, Publications Committee (Martha_wiebe@carleton.ca)
Ann-Marie O’Brien, Provincial Board Representative, Chair, Membership Committee (aobrien@rohcg.on.ca)
Bill Dare, Information Communication Technology (bill.dare@gmail.com)
Kathy Stiell, Vice-President, Operations (stiell@sympatico.ca)
Valerie Morinville, Program Committee, (valmo11@sympatico.ca)
Julie Steveson, Secretary, (harbourmiss@aol.com)
Bulletin
Deborah Davidson, Bulletin Editor (deborah013@sympatico.ca)
Graeme Roderick, Bulletin, Publication Committee, Gullen, AGM (ottawaroderick@sympatico.ca)
Fall/Winter 2009
Summer 2009
Spring 2009
Fall 2008
Summer 2008
Spring 2008
Fall-Winter 2007
Recent Branch Activities
Carleton University School of Social Work celebrated its 60th anniversary with a reception. Branch members, along with faculty and students past and present participated in this celebration. Professor Hugh Shewell, formerly of Ryerson, is the new Director.
During National Social Work Week, the Eastern Branch supported several events. OASW collaborated with Carleton University to present: Advocacy and Social Justice. This was a very successful event attended by about 25 students and faculty. Two veteran social workers, Joan Gullen and Margaret Nelson, spoke of their pursuit for social justice.
OASW also collaborated with social workers at the Royal Ottawa Mental Health Centre. During this event the Gullen prize for print media was awarded to the Ottawa Sun for their series of articles on homelessness in Ottawa. Finally, members of the social work group SWAG received an OASW Inspirational Leader Award.
The Eastern Branch had another very successful AGM held at Algonquin College. 62 members attended this event. The OASW-EB raised a total of $1685 for student scholarships. Social worker, and executive director of Centre 454, Mary Martha Hale was our guest speaker. Ms. Hale's talk focused on impacts of the recession that haven’t hit the front pages of our newspapers. The impact on those whose concerns are not about the decrease in RRSPs but about getting the next meal; those whose worries are not about making next month’s mortgage payment but about having a roof over their head tonight.
Social Justice Committee
Social Justice Committee Report, June to October 2009
In June, 2009, the Committee prepared a response, on behalf of Eastern Branch, to the draft regulations for the Long Term Care Homes Act, 2007. Our submission highlighted several important issues, including an amendment to Regulations 28 and 29 to ensure that social workers and other hospital discharge planners do not lose the legislative right to complete part of the process of placement planning as delegates for CCAC. [Click here for Response]
In June, a presentation was made to Ottawa’s Finance and Economic Affairs Committee in support of a motion to ban future arms trade exhibitions on City property. Unfortunately, in spite of many impassioned arguments in favour, the motion was defeated.
On a more positive note, a motion to consolidate the numerous City branches responsible for housing and homelessness, which we had urged councillors to support, did pass at Council.
In September, the committee was represented at a consultation on the Ottawa Municipal Poverty Reduction Strategy. The report and recommendations of the consultation meeting will be available in November and the Poverty Reduction Strategy will be presented to Ottawa City Council on December 3, at which time community support for the recommendations will be extremely important.
Social Justice Committee meetings are being held this fall on the following Wednesdays at 5:30 p.m.: September 17, October 14, November 18 and December 9.
In collaboration with People for a Better Ottawa, the committee will monitor and respond to draft documents for the 2010 Ottawa City Budget, beginning at the end of October.
Sub-committees continue to work on the following issues:
- A municipal income tax proposal to be presented to Ottawa City Council.
- A plan of action to address concerns regarding the care provided to vulnerable .residents of domiciliary hostels and other such publicly-supported homes.
Any member who would like to join the committee is invited to do so. Please contact: margn@magma.ca for more details.
Eastern Branch Social Justice Committee members Meeting with Minister of Community and Social Services Madeleine Meilleur, October 2008
 Early in October, the Honourable Madeleine Meilleur received a delegation of three members from our Committee (as arranged by Helen Saravanamuttoo, who lives in the minister's riding) at her constituency office in Ottawa. For the most part, the meeting was very cordial, and the minister gave us well over the allotted half hour of her time. On one issue, however, she was not interested in our arguments or recommendations for change. That issue was the Ontario Child Benefit and the accompanying changes to OW and ODSP benefits. The brief upon which the presentation was based, as well as a short report on the minister's response, can be accessed by clicking [Brief].
The Social Justice Committee continues to act on the recommendations of the communications study conducted by students at the Carleton University School of Journalism (see below, "Together, We Are Stronger"). Early in the summer, representatives of 10 agencies in eastern Ontario were contacted regarding the communication strategy and positive response was received from five of them. The next step will be to distribute posters and send a questionnaire to the members in the agencies that welcome member communication with our Social Justice Committee. There will also be renewed contact with agencies that have not yet given a positive response.
Because of our concern about the use of street drugs by children and youth, the Committee has followed closely the initiatives of Crime Prevention Ottawa and sent a representative to the second CPO Forum in May, 2008, as well as to a public presentation on Youth Gangs in Ottawa in October.
The Committee has taken several initiatives related to poverty over the past few months. In June, a letter was sent to the Ottawa mayor and councillors, congratulating them on Council's letter to the provincial government in which Council called for the back to school and winter clothing allowances to be restored for families receiving social assistance and advocating for the full amount of the National Child Benefit Supplement to be passed on to such families.
In September, a letter on the Ontario Poverty Reduction Strategy from Ontario Campaign 2000, co-signed by two members of the Social Justice Committee, was delivered to the Honourable Madeleine Meilleur's constituency office. The letter, composed by Campaign 2000, called for action in accordance with the recommendations of the "25 in 5 Network for Poverty Reduction". Four recommendations were spelled out: 1. Ontario's poverty reduction plan must include a target, 2. Ontario needs a long term five year plan, 3. the strategy should address how all Ontarians are doing, and, 4. a multi-year plan must build in assurances of accountability from one year to the next. Under point 4, our version of the letter included the following words, "front line workers", inserted in the call for "A Citizen's Advisory Committee that includes grassroots leaders, experts, front line workers and people living on low income." Our Committee intends to promote the idea of consultation with front line workers, including social workers, at every opportunity in future communications with the Ontario government.
At this time, our Committee is researching any standards that may be in place to protect residents of domiciliary hostels and the monitoring of conditions in these homes.
We welcome input from Eastern Branch members on any issue, but particularly at this time on concerns about domiciliary hostels and on recent experiences with families on social assistance who have teenagers. Please contact us at: socialjustice.oasweb@gmail.com.
Together, We are Stronger
To view a summary of a communications project conducted by students from the Carleton University School of Journalism for the Social Justice Committe of Eastern Branch, [click here].
Call to Action/Appel à l'action
Please click here for details on how you can help.
Cliquez ici pour les détails des actions indiquées.
Contact Information
Eastern Branch Office: OASW-EB@magma.ca
Mailing Address: Eastern Branch Office
c/o Heartwood House/au coeur de la vie
53 Chapel St., Room 303
Ottawa, ON K1N 1H5
Branch telephone: 613-238-8406
Branch President: Barbara Merriam
Provincial Board Representative: Ann-Marie O'Brien
|
