Sheldon Kennedy (left) and Rick More, father to Lindsey More in front of the new Sheldon Kennedy Centre of Excellence and Lindsey More Youth Mental Health and Addiction Hub on Sept. 15, 2023. (rdnewsNOW/Josh Hall)

By Josh Hall (Twitter: @Vancan19)

SHELDON KENNEDY AND LINDSEY MORE

Tragedy into triumph: Namings honour heart and soul of new Centre of Excellence

Sep 15, 2023 | 4:30 PM

“Welcome to the Sheldon Kennedy Centre of Excellence and the Lindsey More Youth Mental Health and Addiction Hub.”

Those are the words you’ll hear if you drive to the southwest end of campus at Red Deer Polytechnic (RDP) to visit or utilize the services of the stunning 60,000+ square foot, three-storey facility dreamt up seven or eight years ago.

The namings were announced Friday, as the Central Alberta Child Advocacy Centre (CACAC) makes final preparations to permanently open its new doors later this fall to youth and families seeking help related to cases of child abuse.

The CACAC has facilitated about 330 forensic interviews so far this year, matching the total from all of 2022.

Kennedy, a former NHLer, said that when he was asked if they could put his name on the building, he needed to be convinced it would actually prove beneficial. Well-documented is Kennedy’s personal journey involving sexual abuse, which has led him to becoming one of the world’s foremost spokespersons and advocates on the subject.

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(rdnewsNOW/Josh Hall)

Kennedy said the naming is an honour, but added it’s no surprise his story and that of Lindsey More have become uniquely intertwined.

“I was abused as a kid, but I was also in long-term mental health hospitals and psych wards, on suicide watch, and could easily have become a person not with us today. But by the grace of God, I’m here; I somehow found my way out of addiction, and somehow found a purpose to be here,” he said.

“There’s a closer connection between my story and Lindsey than people would think. It’s critical that we have the mental health and addiction treatment beds here, with all the therapy, help and counselling, because there’s such a strong connection between that world and the world I come from. It doesn’t mean somebody has to be sexually abused to struggle [mentally].”

Be it shame, guilt, doubt, worry, anxiety, depression, sadness or feeling invisible, Kennedy said, the ties between him and Lindsey are a mile long, making it apropos that they should share such a naming honour.

It was September 2015 when Lindsey More, a high schooler at the time, died by suicide. Shortly thereafter, the Mores started the Smiles Thru Lindsey Foundation, which has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for mental health initiatives and suicide prevention.

A coalition was then formed with the then much smaller CACAC which saw the early idea of building a Centre of Excellence be born.

Rick More, Lindsey’s father, noted her desire to become a pilot, pointing out that a Cessna, like one she’d flown, flew over the ceremony on Friday.

Within the Lindsey More Youth Mental Health and Addiction Hub, kids can access a variety of supports to help them win their battle.

“There were some dark days, and I still carry a guilt as a father that I wasn’t there on her last day. I think I’ll always have that,” said More. “But Smiles Thru Lindsey has been amazing, and with over $600,000 raised, the new generation is talking about mental health. But that’s just half the battle. Smiles Thru Lindsey is my personal medicine, and while it can be emotionally tiring, I enjoy talking to students, and seeing it work keeps me going.”

More said he’d give all of this up to have Lindsey back, but knows that if she could see what’s transpired in the wake of her passing, she’d be proud.

More admits he and his wife were ill-prepared when Lindsey came to them, professing that she’d attempted suicide twice, and firmly believes that if this new facility had been around in 2015, she’d still be alive.

“We are very honoured to have Lindsey More’s name on our Youth Mental Health and Addiction Hub. We also feel a tremendous sense of gratitude and excitement to have Sheldon Kennedy’s name attached to the Centre of Excellence,” says Mark Jones, CACAC CEO.

“This is a truly special moment for us. Without Sheldon’s support and vision, we would not be gathered here today. Lindsey and Sheldon represent the heart and soul of the Centre of Excellence – who it serves, what it aims to be, and what we will achieve together.”

Sheldon Kennedy (left) and Mark Jones, CEO of the Central Alberta Child Advocacy Centre. (rdnewsNOW/Josh Hall)

The way the Centre of Excellence has been constructed allows for all partners within the building to work in a fully-integrated way, with the ability to do applied research and training for students and faculty at RDP. It could even lead to new programs for Red Deer Polytechnic, said President Stuart Cullum.

A primary partner in the building is Alberta Health Services, which will take up the first floor, including for its 16-bed Step Up, Step Down treatment program for teens aged 13-18.

“AHS is grateful to be joining like-minded community partners in this new centre that will not only provide us with new space for youth programs to care for those who need us but will also enhance our ability to collaborate with partners to provide wraparound care and support to children, youth and their families,” says Kerry Bales, Chief Program Officer of Provincial Addiction & Mental Health and Correctional Health Services.

Other tenants will include the Central Alberta Sexual Assault Support Centre, and a Move Your Mood Studio.

Others who spoke on Friday included Premier Danielle Smith, Eagle Builders and CACAC Board Chair Terry Loewen.

Tenants should mostly be moved in over the next few weeks, with a grand opening event yet to be announced.