Steve King announcing the reopening of Pathways Addictions Resource Centre.
Image Credit: YOUTUBE/ MrRunsteve
August 22, 2021 - 10:14 AM
Penticton’s Pathways Addictions Resource Centre has officially reopened after it received council’s support following a funding drop from Interior Health.
Steve King, a counsellor and supervisor at Pathways, announced the reopening of the addictions treatment centre in Penticton via YouTube, Aug. 20.
“As a non-profit addictions counselling agency that has been servicing the community for 46 years, we were thrown a curveball by the local health authority with the withdrawal of our funding and the possible disintegration of our team and services provided,” he said in the video.
“However shortly thereafter, no one wished to sit back, retire or extinguish what had taken years to build,” he said, adding they received support from the local community.
Pathways offers a broad range of counselling services for individuals, couples, families and groups of all ages, he said. Counsellors specialize in treating addictions, traumas, anxieties, fears and phobias.
Earlier this week, Penticton city council decided to call on Interior Health to restore $500,000 in annual funding for the non-profit. Interior Health brought the funding to an end on May 31 so it can spend the money to offer the same services internally.
READ MORE: Penticton council calls on Interior Health to restore funding to Pathways Addictions Resource Centre
Council also unanimously agreed to send a letter of support to the federal government to provide funding for a detox program at Pathways.
“We are delighted to have our offices formally open again and invite you to come by or give us a call,” King said.
“Unfortunately, we do now have to charge fee-for-service but will be taking donations in the hope that we can provide future service for those who are unable to afford to attend,” he wrote underneath the video.
Pathways and Interior Health could not be immediately reached for comment.
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