Connection at centre of Mental Health Week events in Wilmot area
- May 7
- 3 min read
By Galen Simmons
As Mental Health Week is marked across Canada May 4-10, the Interfaith Counselling Centre in New Hamburg is encouraging residents to think about the role connection plays in supporting mental health.
This year’s Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) theme is Come Together, Canada. Stronger connections. Better mental health. The message focuses on strengthening belonging, reducing isolation and recognizing the small, everyday ways people can support one another.
For Interfaith Counselling Centre executive director Rev. Matthew Isert Bender, the theme lines up closely with the work the centre does every day.
“That is our core message, so it really resonated,” he said.
Throughout the week, the centre has organized events aimed at seniors, youth, families and the broader community. Some events are focused on intentional conversation and wellness education, while others are simply about giving people a chance to get out, gather and enjoy time together.
Earlier in the week, the centre hosted a seniors wellness talk at the Wellesley Township Recreation Complex, a Great Divide Trail travelogue at The Waterlot in New Hamburg and a seniors wellness session and youth wellness night at the Wilmot Recreation Centre (WRC). On Friday, May 8, a youth event will be held at the WRC from 4:30-7 p.m. featuring karaoke, music bingo and more. On Saturday, May 9, residents are invited to the WRC from 2-4 p.m. for an open swim, walk and popcorn.
Bender said the week is intended to help destigmatize conversations about mental health while reminding people that support can take many forms.
“It’s not weakness,” he said of reaching out for support. “It’s not carrying it alone.”
According to CMHA resources for Mental Health Week, social connection is tied to higher rates of wellbeing, greater resilience and longer life expectancy, while isolation and loneliness can contribute to both mental and physical health challenges.
The effects of loneliness are not limited to feeling sad or disconnected. CMHA notes loneliness and prolonged social isolation can trigger stress responses in the body and are associated with depression, high blood pressure, heart disease and stroke.
Bender says that makes connection a community health issue, not simply an individual one.
“Chronic loneliness impacts our overall wellness in very tangible ways,” he said.
While counselling remains an important and specialized form of support, he said good mental health is also built through the everyday fabric of community life – visiting someone recovering from surgery, checking in on a neighbour, attending a local event, volunteering, joining a club or simply calling a friend.
“Those are actually the bedrock of good mental health, good community,” he said.
That message is especially important in rural communities, where transportation, income, mobility and access to services can all affect whether people are able to stay connected. CMHA notes people with disabilities and those living on low incomes are often more vulnerable to loneliness because barriers can reduce opportunities for social contact.
Bender said everyone has a role to play in noticing who may be isolated and taking the time to reach out.
“If everyone in the community is mindful of who might be someone right now who isn’t able to engage, ‘How do I reach out?’ And if each of us has a person or two that we are reaching out to, then that’s huge,” he said.
The Interfaith Counselling Centre is also using Mental Health Week as part of a broader shift away from its long-running auction fundraiser, which moved online during the pandemic but lost much of its community connection in the process.
“What was lost in the virtual was that opportunity for connection,” Bender said.
Now, the centre is looking to build more in-person outreach, education and community events while continuing to raise funds to subsidize counselling services. He said roughly 60 per cent of the counselling provided by the centre receives some form of subsidy.
“We need a percentage to come from donations, individuals and business so we can continue to make sure everyone gets counselling,” he said.
For Bender, the takeaway from Mental Health Week is simple; stronger communities help build stronger mental health.
“We all are involved in working for better mental health,” he said. “Everyone has a role to play.”
For more information on the services offered by the Interfaith Counselling Centre, visit www.interfaithcounselling.ca. For more information on Mental Health Week 2026 and online resources, visit cmha.ca/mental-health-week.
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