“We find ourselves in a pinch,” said director Glenn Allan. “I’m not one to make pleas; I hate doing this part of the job, but if we don’t do it then this office won’t be here to help people.”

The CCAA is a national non-profit, non-government charitable organization dedicated to eliminating child abuse through advocacy, education, public awareness and prevention programs. The office serves as a resource and referral centre for people seeking information and guidance pertaining to abuse, addiction and mental health issues. The office also acts as a beacon for those seeking to use services available within the Golden Horseshoe.

“We try from head office, we’ve tried to help (with funding for this office) as much as possible, but it does come down to the community base in the end,” said CCAA development and communications director Celeste Zugec, adding the organization relies solely on the generosity of individuals and corporate donors. “We’re really looking for (community) partners who want to come alongside and support financially, perhaps on a monthly basis if they can manage it, to help us keep this service here.

“It would take 100 partners every month to keep this place going and allow us to provide the services here and expand the services.”

Since opening its doors last November, the office has been active in serving the community.

“We have engaged with many families living in the immediate area, along with Stoney Creek mountain, Winona, East Hamilton, Binbrook and Dundas, as well as a few from Fort Erie, Welland and St. Catharines,” said Mr. Allan. “We were able to direct men, women and youth to safe houses, one-on-one and/or group counseling, 12-step groups, drug and alcohol rehab centres, withdrawal management centres and so on. There are a lot of really good services, but people don’t always know how to access them.”

The office’s Peer Support Group for Adult Male Survivors of Childhood Sexual Abuse also continues to run strongly. Directed by Mr. Allan, a sexual abuse survivor, the group meets every Monday from 7 p. m. to 8 p. m.

“We have received numerous referral calls from Hamilton Withdrawal Management Centre, Hamilton Drugs, Alcohol and Gambling Services, Hamilton Probation and Parole, Hamilton Catholic Family Services, the Good Shepherd, Wesley Urban Ministries, Nina’s Place at Joseph Brant Memorial Hospital, Niagara Region Sexual Assault Centre, to name a few, looking for us to take their clients who are adult male survivors of childhood sexual abuse,” said Mr. Allan.

“There’s nothing for adult male survivors of childhood sexual abuse, so the peer support group is not only established, but also growing,” Allan said. “We have calls from Niagara and Halton looking for that group to be established there; it’s long overdue and the services for men basically are nil.”

Mr. Allan’s friend and former National Hockey League star Theo Fleury knows all too well the importance of such services for men. The former Calgary Flames winger was sexually abused by his junior coach, Graham James, a trauma he says drove him to alcohol, drugs and promiscuity.

Mr. Fleury says he has been to four treatment centres and has done about 1,500 hours of therapy, which has allowed him to reframe the event.

“It’s very easy for me to talk about it now – I’m not ashamed of it – and the addiction part, I look at it as my behaviour fit the crime; a crime was committed to me and then because I felt I couldn’t tell anybody, I started acting out, using alcohol, drugs, anger problems, there’s so much dynamic to this that people don’t understand,” he said during a recent visit to the centre, adding his abuse went on from the age of 14 to 17.

“The power of the whole thing is that you feel you can’t tell anybody, you have to bury it away, so talk about places that are important – this office is really important; it’s like an emergency room or lifeline, where you can find out where to go to get the help you need.”

Mr. Fleury says you can’t turn a blind eye to sexual abuse.

“One in six boys and one in three girls by the time they’re 18 have been sexually abused,” he said. “If there’s one in six boys and one in three girls getting abused, that means there’s a lot of abusers out there as well, so those guys aren’t going to support a place like this,” he added. “Community members need to come together to ensure there’s a place like this for people to come into, so they can get the help they need and, in turn, spread the word and help others.”

Mr. Allan says the office provides a vital service.

“There’s a lot of people that come through this door, call our number and e-mail us,” he said. “If you were talking to them, they would tell you that is an office that is needed.”

The Canadian Centre for Abuse Awareness south western Ontario office in Stoney Creek is at 53 King St. E.

For more information on how you can help keep its doors open, call Mr. Allan at (905) 594-1581 or e-mail him at glenn@ccfaa.com .