Since 2011, Let’s Bond has distributed the funds raised to the Fondation Jeunes en Tête and the Douglas Institute Foundation to support their efforts in the community.
The Let’s Bond collective, made up of 50 dedicated young professionals, has taken up the mental health cause to promote dialogue and finally break down the taboos surrounding this issue.
The vision of Let’s Bond is to live in a society where mental health issues are perceived and treated as any other physical illness without any concerns for those suffering to come forward. To make our vision a reality and help move the conversations, Let’s Bond’s mission is to continue the dialogue about mental health to break taboos, to educate our community and to create bonding activities for raising funds to support organizations that opreate on the field.
Since 2011, Let’s Bond has distributed the funds raised to the Fondation Jeunes en Tête and the Douglas Institute Foundation to support their efforts in the community.
The Fondation Jeunes en Tête offers free prevention workshops to high schools across Quebec reaching over 52,000 students every year.
With the funds raised by Let’s Bond, the Fondation ensures a continuum of these workshops and adapts them to the different needs of each high school. In 2020, the collective, its funding partner Desjardins, and several others participated in a technological project to virtualize the workshops so that they could continue being held during the COVID-19 pandemic.
≪La collaboration avec Let’s Bond est pour nous très précieuse car elle met au premier plan la génération future du Québec et son bien-être. En organisant des événements inoubliables auprès de la communauté de jeunes gens d’affaires montréalais, Let’s Bond nous permet de pérenniser nos programmes de sensibilisation en santé mentale auprès de la génération future, afin de lui assurer un avenir brillant d’espoir et de possibilités. Toujours extrêmement appréciés, les événements LB nous permettent aussi de rejoindre un public clé que nous ne rejoignons pas pour l’instant avec nos propres événements. Ces nouveaux philanthropes sont une fierté pour notre société et Let’s Bond : une fierté pour la Fondation Jeunes en Tête!≫
Despite some noticeable progress in recent years, mental illness remains a taboo subject. The vast majority of Canadians will be directly—or indirectly affected by mental health disorders whether it be through a friend, colleague or a loved one. And yet, the stigma persists. This reality reflects the importance of the partnership between Let’s Bond and the Douglas Foundation. There’s still so much work to be done to further the discussion and we need to join forces to ensure that mental health becomes a priority in today’s society. Together, we are building something incredible that goes beyond money raised to fund research, patient care and education.
Funds raised by Let’s Bond ensure the development of care for patients and their environment, support for neuroscience and mental health research, and education and training here at the Douglas.In practical terms, these funds can represent a hygiene kit for new patients who arrive unprepared, toys for the youngsters or a rigorous follow-up with worried families who need professional support. The list goes on; what’s most important is that through Let’s Bond’s philanthropic support, people with mental health issues are given hope for a normal life.
It’s very reassuring for the Douglas Foundation to see the involvement of the next generation in the field of mental health. The Let’s Bond team focuses primarily on young workers who represent our future. It’s with them that effective change will take place on a personal level, in workplaces, in politics and in society. This concrete commitment from the next generation of workers is the best way to ensure real progress on mental illness. Together, we represent what the Douglas community does best: coming together to build hope for those who suffer no matter where they come from.
UP House is a community center in Montréal established in 2010. The founders aimed to create a place that eliminates social isolation and rebuilds the confidence, purpose, and community of adults living with mental illness. We are an evidence-based model referred to as a “Clubhouse,” and we are one of 320 clubhouses worldwide: the only clubhouse in Québec
