Grey Owl Post Psychiatric Co-op Center

Through the years, the Grey Owl Post Psychiatric programs have evolved to fit the needs and interests of the members at the time. For more than 20 years, a partnership with Prairie Mountain Health has allowed Grey Owl Post Psychiatric Co-op Centre to provide a variety of group classes, activities, and clubs, helping to build and sustain that sense of community behind everything that we do. From cooking class, gardening group, and games, to peer support, crafting, and holiday get togethers, there truly is a way for each and every one of our members to join in, get involved, and feel right at home.

Just like our programming, mental health and the surrounding care is a sector that has seen a lot of changes over the years. In the mid-eighties, as institutionalized mental health care was being re-examined and Brandon Community Welcome was hitting the ground running, the Grey Owl Post Psychiatric Program was developed, using the main floor of the Welcome Inn as a place for members to meet, socialize, and share common experiences.

As it grew to include others in the community, running modest activities and events for the psychiatric community at large, Grey Owl Post Psychiatric Co-op Centre became a registered charity. This allowed members to have fundraising as their primary goal, establishing an independence from the “system”. This also allowed them to receive donations of furniture and supplies from Brandon Mental Health Centre and other psychiatric entities as they took an interest in what the organization was doing for the community.

Eventually, as more community-base agencies were being planned in preparation for the closure of the Brandon Mental Health Centre, a partnership with Rehabilitation Program for Psychiatry was formed, further expanding the programs and adding Grey Owl Extended Program in anticipation of the obvious need for social, recreational, and educational programming upon the emptying of Brandon Mental Health Center and eventual absence of the hospital system.

Grey Owl Posy Psychiatric continues to grow, forming partnerships with like-minded organizations, adjusting where necessary to foster that sense of community for our members to support them in their mental health recovery.