Thank you Tamara!
The Kettle Society would like to thank Tamara Little for concluding her term as board chair after two years of service. A board member since 2017, Tamara has been a passionate advocate for dismantling the stigma around mental health, better access and more supportive housing, and a proactive approach to finding long-term solutions for serving our vulnerable communities. Tamara is an experienced communicator with excellent knowledge of corporate communications, public affairs, and government relations. Her vision, expertise, and leadership have been invaluable for the growth of The Kettle.
“I think one of the reasons I got involved with The Kettle is that there’s so much stigma against people that are living with challenges related to substance use or mental health. And The Kettle really works to go to where people are and support them where they are, with supportive housing as a base, and so many other programs. What I would really urge people is that, you know, when you want to be part of the solution here in the city, make things better - volunteer with an organization like The Kettle. And even donate. Because we see the challenges that people are having and we want to make a difference. I believe people do want to help, and a really easy, tangible thing is to volunteer with The Kettle, do donations, and that can really make a difference in people's lives.”
- Tamara Little
Thank you, Tamara, for your leadership during this time. We look forward to your continued involvement in The Kettle’s vision and more successful projects in the future.
Q&A with Tamara
-
What has been the highlight of your experience volunteering as a Board Member/Board Chair?
The thing I was most proud of was the chance to see the partnership with the Opera come together, including watching the opera that our members were part of. And without a doubt, The Recovery Café has been a highlight. But I’d say also knowing the members, getting to know them, hearing about what their experiences at The Kettle have been, and how we can make it better.
-
What is your hope for the future of The Kettle?
I hope it can continue to serve the community in a way that works for them. We’ve really put a lot of effort into listening to the community, we have a new strategic plan that we are working on, that we’ve consulted our members on. So, my goal really would be for them to be successful in meeting the needs of the community as it grows over the next couple of years. And of course, we would love a new drop-in centre one day!
-
What excites you about The Kettle’s newest program – The Recovery Café?
When we heard that the Street to Home foundation was going to be investing in us as the partner for the Recovery Café we were really excited and very proud. It was new to us, we didn’t know a lot about it, but when we consulted with the members, and I was at some of those sessions, it was really clear that they thought this could be something that would be interesting and helpful to the community here. And it seems like from talking to the team here, already, we are getting a lot of people come through, and really seeing a difference in the type of life that they can live (or leave, I’m not sure). We are really excited about the new space we will be moving in. And again, the partnership with Street to Home we couldn’t say enough about how wonderful it’s been with them.