With the calendar changing to May, it begins Community Living Month in North Bay.
The month of May is annually recognized by the City of North Bay as Community Living Month in partnership with the organization that provides services to people with intellectual disabilities.
“It’s the time for us as people across Ontario to come together and celebrate the many successes of people who have an intellectual disability,” said Marianne Raymond, Communications Manager for Community Living North Bay.
The theme of this year’s Community Living Month is “Still in this Together”.
“We’re really honouring the perseverance and the resilience shown through this last year as we continue to navigate through the COVID-19 pandemic,” Raymond explained.
Throughout the month, Community Living will be holding virtual events for members and the public to shine a light on the challenges the pandemic has brought. Raymond says the local area has a lot to be proud of.
“We’ve seen the community really come together and highlight all of those successes those people who have a disability might have,” she said.
Community Living Month has been recognized in North Bay for over a decade, and Raymond says it can lead to the organization strengthening relationships it has in the community.
“I think that these types of campaigns where we’re able to raise awareness help us build those partnerships and solidify those further,” she noted.
As there is seemingly hope in the months ahead with the vaccination rollout, Raymond says the month should serve as a reminder of how important social connections are.
“As people, connection is important for us whether we have a disability or not. I think we’ve all felt that sort of isolation through these last 13 months. Not only for people who have disabilities but for all of us, we just need to remember how important connection is,” Raymond said. “I think we can see a bit of hope on the horizon and hopefully things will improve and we’ll all be able to come together as a community shortly to be able to celebrate.”
Virtual events for Community Living Month will be announced on its social media pages.
