Image Credit: CFJC Today

By Chad Klassen

RECOVERY FUNDING

‘It’s frustrating’: Blue House Recovery Society pushing for more funds for recovery beds

Feb 18, 2022 | 3:18 PM

KAMLOOPS — The Blue House Recovery Society is trying to get people in Kamloops over their addictions, whether it’s to drugs or alcohol.

It houses six people at a time and provides a supportive home while they work and get back on their feet. The society now has charitable status, which it hopes can boost fundraising efforts.

“Charitable tax status allows us to write tax receipts to anyone that wants to make a donation to our society, so that charitable tax status will more confidently go towards fundraising and fund development for our society,” said Executive Director Sean Marshall. “As well, it opens the door to a few grants and things like that.”

Marshall has already applied for a grant — the Reaching Home grant, which provides federal dollars distributed by a committee — but was denied. The Blue House was 14th out of 16 applications. Marshall was told the program doesn’t reach as many vulnerable people as others.

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“It’s frustrating, a little baffling, and I think other people in the community share our frustrations,” he said. “We see how much money is out there for some transitional housing and programs such as mini storage for homeless people and things like that, but the money and funding that’s out there for the treatment and recovery programs, it just doesn’t seem to be there yet.”

Kamloops Councillor Bill Sarai says there needs to be more funding for recovery sites like the Blue House.

“This is the type of support, the wraparound support that we keep hearing about and we didn’t actually see it until we got here and the benefits of it,” said Sarai, who took a tour of the Blue House recently with Mayor Ken Christian and fellow councillor Arjun Singh. “We were hoping to navigate some funds to this society so they can keep this good work going, and to hear that they didn’t get it is troubling.”

Carmin Mazzotta responded, saying, “It’s a great program it’s needed and we acknowledge that. The challenge is when you have double the amount in terms of applications for funding that is available.”

Mazzotta says there was only $1 million to be distributed and $2.1 million worth of grant applications. The City acknowledges similar recovery and mental health services are needed.

“The City has been advocating for a sobering and assessment centre for a number of years, mental health courts, expansion of the Car 40 program,” noted Mazzotta.

Some of those programs rely on a financial committment from Interior Health. Sarai is calling on IH to direct more funds towards recovery and away from supportive housing.

“Supportive housing has its place in every community, don’t get me wrong, but the next step’s not there,” he noted. “It’s almost like we’re just warehousing people and hoping they navigate the help on their own, and that’s not going to happen with addiction and mental health.”

The Blue House Recovery Society operates on $31,000 a year and just wants a little more federal and provincial funding.

“We’ll be able to offer a more comprehensive program at the Blue House and hopefully be able to expand our programming — open up another men’s house and definitely a women’s house,” said Marshall.

CFJC Today reached out to Interior Health for comment on funding for more recovery beds, but no one returned our calls before deadline.