News and Reports

For the past 10+ years, PSN, Positive Space Network, has been operating under the ROCK umbrella of programs and services. PSN was initially housed at ROCK years ago in its’ first stages of funding through the Trillium Foundation, as it required a supporting agency to anchor it and allow it to grow. We have been very proud to support PSN for all of these years and watch PSN evolve as a network and reach thousands.

It is now time for us to let PSN spread its’ wings and no longer be anchored to ROCK. While we will continue to offer programs for 2SLGBTQIA+ young people and their families, ROCK was never meant to be a permanent home for PSN – and through collaboration and partnership, we will support PSN to become its’ own entity in Halton as it has always aspired to be.

To continue to support PSN with this transition and growth, ROCK has hired consultants Joanna Matthews, (retired VP of Services) and Executive Director of Wisdom2Action, Fae Johnstone to collectively lead this process and solidify partnerships and provide professional consultation and support for PSN’s success.

As you would have seen, and hopefully participated in, Fae Johnstone has been offering multiple sessions over the last few months to discuss re-imagining PSN as its own entity to support the 2SLGBTQIA+ community in Halton. Fae and Joanna are also now holding meetings with interested parties to create strategies for PSN to potentially become their own organization or align with another appropriate charity. We are excited to support Fae and Joanna’s work with PSN as our commitment to continue to invest in PSN and what we know it will soon become and needs to be, for the community. It is our hope that together, we can support PSN to spread its wings, because Halton needs an organization by and for 2SLGBTQIA+ communities.

ROCK is working to expand our service offerings for 2SLGBTQIA+ children, youth and families in Halton. We will continue to offer targeted prevention groups, the Embrace and Empower Group, the Affirm Group, the Families in Transition Group and individual therapy. We will be sharing communications externally as we continue to expand and promote our service offerings in this space.

PSN services will cease operation by ROCK as of August 31, 2022. We recognize this will be a time of transition, but we are exploring next steps to ensure key aspects of PSN find a new home. Drop-in sessions, ConnecTions and Gender Gear distribution will be on hold until PSN is able to announce new location, partnership and ultimately, new organization in the future! We are excited to see what is next for PSN in the Halton community.

Today, I share the news of the upcoming retirement of ROCK’s VP of Services, our esteemed colleague, Joanna Matthews. Joanna’s last day with ROCK will be Friday, June 24th.

Joanna has been an incredible asset to our agency and to the child and youth mental health sector over the past 6+ years. For ROCK, Joanna has been a leader in innovative systems design; an architect for Access and System Navigation; a trailblazer for Lead Agency System Transition; a bridge to multiple collaborative partnerships and a valued counsel strategist on the executive leadership team. I know that Joanna has meant so much to many other agencies, partners, and sectors in her extensive career and we are so very lucky that she is completing her career with our agency. She has spent the last year coaching and imparting her knowledge to our Directors and many staff who have been privileged to work with her.

Please join me in wishing Joanna all the very best as she writes the next chapter of her journey with her family in Huntsville, ON. She will be missed, and we will always be grateful to have worked alongside her.

We will plan a quiet send-off for Joanna to take place closer to her last day before retirement.