I was glad to read in the August 15 edition of the Beaver that the Ford government is rethinking the funding of its autism program.
No parent of a special needs child should have to fight for necessary treatment. Early intervention therapies for autism result in huge payoffs to individuals on the spectrum, their families, and society as a whole. It makes no sense, either financially or in terms of ordinary human decency, for the government to deny those therapies to the people who need them.
I was also glad to read Daryl Kramp’s assertion that he had met with families and listened to their concerns. I could only wish that he had as much interest in the concerns of individuals and families struggling with mental health issues. Mr. Kramp failed to attend the public town hall meeting on May 27th to which he was invited, where the Save Our Services group sought to address the huge cuts to services in Napanee over the past year.
Since the town hall, I have reached out to him twice via email to meet with our group, but he has failed to respond. Perhaps our group needs to organize a protest outside his office in order to shame him into listening to us as well. In the meantime, people who ask for help from L&A Addictions and Community Mental Health Services continue to be turned away.
Penny Robertson,
M.Ed (Couns. Psych.)
Selby