I’m rising this morning to talk about a subject that’s on our minds a lot in this House, and that is mental health, particularly youth mental health.

Speaker, I had occasion, recently, to meet with a bunch of parents who are very concerned with the mental health of their children in high school. We’ve just lived through a difficult two and a half years of folks having to learn on their own. What I’m hearing from parents and what I’m hearing from high school students is that many don’t feel a sense of belonging; many are feeling they’re in a difficult place. And I don’t want to trivialize that. I don’t want to tell people that things are going to be better overnight. But what I do want to tell people is that in Ottawa, we have community services to help people with their mental health.

Next Friday, on May 26, at 4 p.m., at 464 Metcalfe Street, we’re going to be bringing together community providers who will give youth opportunities to volunteer, opportunities to plug into services, to feel like they belong.

So I invite you: If you want to plug into your community more, if you want to make your community a better place—or if you already are—join me and other community mental health advocates to find out about who you can meet, where you can belong, because you are loved for who you are. We need to make our province a better place, and we’re having an argument about that in this building. But on the way there, the services that our grandparents fought for—you deserve a right to access them, to make our festivals great, to make our athletics great, to make our arts community great.

Youth, we need your help, so join me on May 26. I can’t wait to see you.

I enjoyed the remarks from the member from Thornhill. I particularly liked hearing about the member describing herself as one of those politicians that will actually do a shift at a homeless shelter and help hand out blankets and food. I love to hear those stories. I’m wondering if, from her experience, she could—and it was the Anglican church, if I’m not mistaken, that you had volunteered at with the blankets and the food—the Anglican church in your community?