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5 reasons to volunteer remotely (written by our volunteers!)
When you become a remote Online Services Crisis Line volunteer for Distress Centre, you get to make ...
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Donor Spotlight: Shamir Ladhani
June 30, 2021Image: Shamir and his daughter, Ambreena, who is a Distress Centre volunteer. Shamir has donated mon...
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Volunteer Spotlight: Elissa
June 10, 2021Crisis line volunteer Elissa* is no stranger to dealing with life’s hardships. She endured years o...
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Q1 2021 Update from our Executive Director, Jerilyn Dressler
May 18, 2021See this update as a video! Hello everyone, and welcome to spring! The days are getting longer, the ...
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2020 Report to the Community
May 13, 202150 YEARS OF CRISIS SUPPORT Volunteers have been answering phones at Distress Centre for 50 years. Re...
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Announcement: Jerilyn Dressler is leaving Distress Centre
April 27, 2021Image: Jerilyn Dressler with the Board of Directors in 2019. Together and on behalf of Distress Cent...
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Volunteer Spotlight: Mark Li
April 20, 2021Mark Li began his volunteering journey at Distress Centre in October 2020, when he made a strong fir...
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COVID-19: 1 Year Later – Distress Centre’s 211 program response
This is fourth and final part of our multi-part series exploring Distress Centre’s response to the...
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COVID-19: 1 Year Later – Distress Centre’s programs at SORCe
This is part three in our multi-part series exploring Distress Centre’s response to the COVID-19 p...
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Volunteer Spotlight: Katherine Peters
April 6, 2021“Being part of Distress Centre has enriched me as a person and a social worker. It has given me th...
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COVID-19: 1 Year Later – Distress Centre’s counselling program response
March 25, 2021This is part two in our multi-part series exploring Distress Centre’s response to the COVID-19 pan...
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COVID-19: 1 Year Later – Crisis Program Response
One year of pandemic response at Distress Centre Calgary This is part one in our multi-part se...
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Distress Centre’s journey to accreditation with the American Association of Suicidology
March 5, 2021Distress Centre received accreditation from the American Association of Suicidology on February 3, 2...
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Q4 2020 Update from our Executive Director, Jerilyn Dressler
February 2, 2021See this update as a video! Hello everyone, and Happy New Year. I hope you had some time over the ho...
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Donate through Birdies for Kids and have your donation matched up to 50%!
February 1, 2021We are excited to announce that we have been selected to be a part of Shaw Birdies for Kids presente...
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How to create your own personalized self-care plan (step-by-step guide with a template!)
January 27, 20212020 was a difficult year for most of us and one that highlighted the importance of our own mental h...
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Looking back on 2020: An eventful year for Distress Centre
January 15, 2021Image: Our 2020 staff and volunteer photo, taken in December. Like the rest of the world, 2020 was...
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50 Stories Part 50: Volunteers are Everywhere
December 22, 2020Image: ConnecTeen volunteers (Amy Li on the right) at the 2014 Calgary Hitmen game in support of Con...
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211 celebrates 15 years in Calgary!
Image: A celebratory cake baked for the 2016 211 launch in Red Deer County. We’re celebrating 15 y...
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50 Stories Part 49: Bringing People Together
December 15, 2020Image: The Distress Centre staff and volunteer team at Outrun the Stigma 2019. Read – 50 Stori...
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50 Stories Part 48: Navigating the System – 211 in the 2010s
December 8, 2020Image: 211 staff celebrate with cake after we successfully renewed our AIRS accreditation. Read R...
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50 Stories Part 47: Joan Roy – From Practicum to Executive Director
December 1, 2020Image: Joan Roy speaking at our 2014 Lend An Ear Breakfast. Read – 50 Stories Part 46 The unfo...
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50 Stories Part 46: Eyes In and Fingers Out – Board support in the 2010s
November 24, 2020Image: The 2018-2019 Board of Directors at our 2018 Annual General Meeting. Read – 50 Stories ...
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50 Stories Part 45: A SORCe for the homeless
November 17, 2020Image: On June 2, 2017, SORCe was honoured with a Community Justice Award from Alberta Justice and S...
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50 Stories Part 44: It’s A Disaster
November 10, 2020Image: Riverfront Avenue in Calgary after the 2013 flood. Photo by Ryan Quan. Read – 50 Storie...
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Volunteer Spotlight: Romit Panesar
November 5, 2020Some people know from early in their lives what they have passion for. The vast majority however, di...
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50 Stories Part 43: A Circle of Support
November 3, 2020Image: Distress Centre staff at the 2019 United Way Parade. Read – 50 Stories Part 42 Distress...
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50 Stories Part 42: Face-to-Face for 50 years
October 27, 2020Image: Distress Centre counsellors in 2017. Read – 50 Stories Part 41 The professional qualifi...
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50 Stories Part 41: The 5th Decade
October 20, 2020Image: Jerilyn Dressler (middle) accepting the City of Calgary Award for Community Advocate Organiza...
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Q3 Update from our Executive Director, Jerilyn Dressler
October 14, 2020See this update as a video! Hello everyone! I hope you all had a lovely long weekend and that you we...
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50 Stories Part 40: Carol Oliver – Woman With A Vision
October 13, 2020Image: Carol Oliver at the 2008 Distress Centre picnic. Read – 50 Stories Part 39 With the ret...
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50 Stories Part 39: You Can Never Have Too Many Lawyers
October 6, 2020Image: The Distress Centre Board with Executive Director Barb Litchinsky at the 2004 volunteer banqu...
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50 Stories Part 38: Teen Line Goes On-Line
September 29, 2020Image: Teen Line volunteer Christmas party in 2000. Read – 50 Stories Part 37 In 2005 the Dist...
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We miss you!
September 23, 2020Today would have been Lend An Ear 2020. A message from Roxanne Cote, Resource Development Manager: &...
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50 Stories Part 37: Just To Hear Another Voice – Volunteers in the 2000s
September 22, 2020Image: Volunteers receiving recognition for their years of service with Distress Centre at the 2004 ...
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50 Stories Part 36: Out is Okay
September 16, 2020Image: Volunteers in the Contact Centre in 2006. Read – 50 Stories Part 35 For many years, Dis...
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50 Stories Part 35: Information Please – the launch of 211
September 8, 2020Image: 211 staff in 2006. Read – 50 Stories Part 34 Many people who call Distress Centre are l...
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Roxanne Cote reflects on 10 years of Lend An Ear – Distress Centre’s signature fundraiser
September 7, 2020Guest post: Roxanne Cote, Resource Development Manager at Distress Centre (DC), started at DC in 200...
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50 Stories Part 34: Why We Were Doing All This – Counselling in the 2000s
September 1, 2020Image: Counsellors at a team building event in 2000. Read – 50 Stories Part 33 Counsellors in ...
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September is Lend An Ear Month!
September 1, 2020Since we can’t gather in person for Lend An Ear’s 10th Anniversary, we’re spending the month c...
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50 Stories Part 33: Moving and Money
August 25, 2020Image: Distress Centre staff if 2004. Read – 50 Stories Part 32 In 1998, Distress Centre was l...
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50 Stories Part 32: Social Returns on Investment – Distress Centre in the 2000s
August 18, 2020Image: Volunteers in 2006. Read – 50 Stories Part 31 In the early 2000s, a new vision statemen...
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50 Stories Part 31: Modeling By Example – Barb Litchinsky
August 10, 2020Read – 50 Stories Part 30 Barb Litchinsky, the new Executive Director in 1996, brought her own...
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Q2 Update from our Executive Director, Jerilyn Dressler
August 7, 2020See this update as a video! Hello and good day everyone! I hope you are able to take some time to en...
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50 Stories Part 30: Ready Or Not – Technology to 2000
August 4, 2020Image: A staff or volunteer in the early 2000s. Read – 50 Stories Part 29 During the ’80...
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We are reimagining Lend An Ear this year!
July 29, 2020As the COVID-19 pandemic first unfolded, we remained hopeful that we would still be able to celebrat...
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50 Stories Part 29: Nowhere Man – Men’s Lines 1998-2005
July 28, 2020Image: Created from the graphic used in Annual Reports to report on the Men’s Line. Read ̵...
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Chip in for Kids and turn your $10 donation into $30!
July 21, 2020The Shaw Charity Classic has unfortunately been cancelled this year, but Shaw is committed to contin...
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50 Stories Part 28: Doing what you need to do – youth lines in the ’90s
July 21, 2020Image: Teen Line volunteers in 1996. Read – 50 Stories Part 27 The Teen Line was still going s...
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50 Stories Part 27: Collaborate or else – service integration in the ’90s
July 14, 2020Image: From a newspaper in the early ’90s. Read – 50 Stories Part 26 A second major focu...
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50 Stories Part 26: World’s Largest Garage Sale – Fundraising in the ’90s
July 7, 2020Image: A musician performing at the 1993 Megathon. Read – 50 Stories Part 25 As requested by t...
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50 Stories Part 25: Money and Leadership – Board direction in the ’90s
June 30, 2020Image: AADAC Chair presenting plaque to DC Board Chair, Dell Stephens in 1995. Read – 50 Stori...
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50 Stories Part 24: Connecting with seniors
June 23, 2020Image: From a summer newsletter in 1996. Read – 50 Stories Part 23 Meeting the specific needs ...
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50 Stories Part 23: That’s Dedication – Glenda Nyberg, Volunteer from 1983 to 2002
June 16, 2020Image: Glenda Nyberg in her home in 2018. Read – 50 Stories Part 22 From the beginning, volunt...
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50 Stories Part 22: Getting needs met – volunteering in the ’90s
June 9, 2020Image: Volunteers at the 1994 Christmas party. Read – 50 Stories Part 21 150 volunteers were o...
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50 Stories Part 21: Saving a life – Judy’s story
June 3, 2020Read – 50 Stories Part 20 Client confidentiality has always been foundational to Distress Cent...
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4 ways to be a better ally
June 1, 2020All over the world, people are coming together in support of the black community and in protest of o...
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50 Stories Part 20: You Just Felt Honoured – Counselling in the ’90s
May 26, 2020Read – 50 Stories Part 19 Counselling and public education continued to be a significant part ...
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50 Stories Part 19: Know When to Fold ‘Em – The Gambling Line
May 19, 2020Read – 50 Stories Part 18 In January of 1994, AADAC added a province-wide Gambling Line to the...
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Donor Spotlight: Simryn and Praveen Thind
May 14, 2020Guest Post: Simryn Thind Mental health is often a topic that is neglected or not prioritized, when i...
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2019 Report to the Community
May 13, 2020Every second counts when you’re in crisis. That’s why we’re always here to listen....
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50 Stories Part 18: High Hopes – The Youth Drug Line
May 12, 2020Read – 50 Stories Part 17 With its roots as a Drug Information Centre, Distress Centre has alw...
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Distress Centre Calgary sees spike in crisis contacts due to COVID-19
May 6, 2020CALGARY – Distress Centre Calgary is reporting a rising number of crisis contacts related to...
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50 Stories Part 17: Celebrating the 20th Anniversary
May 5, 2020Read – 50 Stories Part 16 Happy Anniversary! Twenty years after its beginnings as the Drug Inf...
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Q1 Update from our Executive Director, Jerilyn Dressler
May 4, 2020See this update as a video! This is not the quarterly update I planned on writing. When I thought of...
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How does Distress Centre manage a fully remote contact centre?
April 30, 2020Image: Dakota Douglas, Crisis Team Lead, working remotely from home. As the severity of the COVID-19...
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50 Stories Part 16: More Than a Warm Heart: Counselling in the 80s
April 28, 2020Read – 50 Stories Part 15 Counselling continued to be a key aspect of the Distress Centre/Drug...
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April 24 Update: Distress Centre’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic
April 24, 2020Our office remains closed but all of our services are still available by phone or online, including ...
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50 Stories Part Story 15: Taking care of business
April 21, 2020Image: Volunteer in a 1982 newspaper. Read – 50 Stories Part 14 During the 80s, The Board of D...
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April 17 Update: Distress Centre’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic
April 17, 2020On March 17th, for the safety of our staff and volunteers, we closed our office. Within a week, we ...
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Distress Centre turns 50 TODAY!
Happy birthday Distress Centre! We first opened our doors 50 years ago on April 14th, 1970. We’ve ...
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50 Stories Part 14: Lending an Ear in the 80s
April 7, 2020Image: This image of volunteers appeared in our 20 year anniversary publication in 1990. Read –...
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50 Stories Part 13: Bye bye Old Y
March 31, 2020Image: Appeared in our 20 year anniversary publication in 1990. Read – 50 Stories Part 12 By 1...
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50 Stories Part 12: Just Between Teens
March 24, 2020Read – 50 Stories Part 11 In the early 70’s, most Drug Information Centre callers were a...
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March 19 Update: Distress Centre’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic
March 19, 2020Distress Centre closed our doors on March 17th, but we continue to provide 24 hour phone and email c...
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50 Stories Part 11: A time to grow, Distress Centre in the 80s
March 17, 2020Read – 50 Stories Part 10 1980 marked the 10th anniversary of the Distress Centre/Drug Centre....
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UPDATE: Distress Centre’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic
March 16, 2020CALGARY, Alta, March 16, 2020 – At Distress Centre Calgary, we’re closely monitoring the COVID-1...
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Distress Centre Calgary’s response to COVID-19
March 13, 2020At Distress Centre Calgary, we’re closely monitoring the COVID-19 (novel coronavirus) situation. T...
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50 Stories Part 10: A force of nature – Jeanette McEachern’s time as Executive Director
March 10, 2020Read – 50 Stories Part 9 In 1979, Board Chair Hilde Houlding proclaimed the departure of Dr. ...
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50 Stories Part 9: Money, money, money
March 3, 2020Read – 50 Stories Part 8 Throughout the 70s, funding was an ongoing challenge. Ken Low noted t...
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50 Stories Part 8: Day and Night, They Were the Ones
February 25, 2020Read – 50 Stories Part 7 From the first days of the Drug Information Centre, volunteers have b...
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50 Stories Part 7: Moving towards the 80s
February 18, 2020Image: A contact card from 1979. Some information removed to protect confidentiality. Read – 5...
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50 Stories Part 6: Venturing out
February 11, 2020Image: From a December 1973 issue of the Calgary Herald. Read – 50 Stories Part 5 In the early...
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50 Stories Part 5: From drugs to distress
February 4, 2020Image: From a 1972 newspaper. Read – 50 Stories Part 4 At the end of 1971, the Drug Informatio...
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