22. To many, it can be a small number. To seniors, however, 22% of them have been diagnosed with depression, which can often be caused by some of the realities of aging such as isolation or deteriorating health. That’s nearly one in four people over 65 living with a mental health challenge. It’s far too many and the resources available to them are far too few.

The Mental Health Commission of Canada makes it clear that there are many seniors – our loved ones – who are struggling with mental health. Christine, a member of Carefor’s Let’s Get Together Club, is one of them.

Christine has been attending the Let’s Get Together Club since 2022. She says she loves it, and that she looks forward to it every week. She described how she is often unable to sleep much the night before because of how excited she is to get up in the morning to go to the Club.

Christine lost her husband about twenty years ago, and since she has been struggling with depression. She doesn’t have many friends in her life. She lost them during COVID, along with two of her neighbors whom she was very close to, leaving her broken hearted.

During COVID, she was cut off from her doctor and social worker, leaving her that much more alone. While she had her dog and cat for company, they weren’t enough. For years, Christine’s doctor tried to convince her to go to a social group to find support, but she resisted. Eventually she relented and attended a group at the Royal Ottawa Mental Health Centre. Just a few weeks was enough to make her realise how valuable a group focused on mental health is.

When the group shut down, she moved to Carefor. The Let’s Get Together Club is the only one of its kind in Ottawa that supports seniors living with mental health challenges. Not only does it help people build friendships and community, it also allows staff to refer clients to  other community programs.

Christine has found a community at Club which has enriched her life. The friendships she’s made don’t just stay within the walls of the Club as she and her friends from the Club often go on outings together to the mall and bookstores.

 “For most of us,” Christine said, “there’s been a reason why we ended up here. That reason doesn’t matter. We’ve ended up here.” She said it with such certainty in her gentle voice that it was clear to see how much the Let’s Get Together Club meant to her. Without this Club, where would she be?

If you would like to know more about the Let’s Get Together Club, please visit our website. To donate to support the Club and people like Christine, go to: www.carefor.ca/donate