WINNIPEG – Manitoba’s farm and rural stress line has hung up, maybe for good this time.
Last week, the service let go of its staff and stopped operations because it ran out of money.
“I just feel really sad,” said Bill Martin, executive director of the Canadian Mental Health Association in the province.
The line’s destiny was tenuous from the start in December 1994. It relied on provincial government money for most of its $130,000 annual budget, while donations and fundraising brought in more than $30,000. In June, the health department announced it would no longer fund the line.
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Martin is discussing other options with the government. One plan would see the service run in conjunction with an urban service paid for by the province.
He said the line would need $66,000 from the government under this plan, and $20,000 from fundraising.
Farmers can call the urban line, but Martin said the service is not tailored to rural people. He said farm organizations on the line’s advisory board don’t think rural residents will call the urban service because they don’t believe people in the city understand their situations.
