On behalf of Regional Council and staff, I want to wish you all the very best this holiday season! I hope you enjoy your time with family, friends and loved ones.
 
Taking care of each other and our mental health
In previous years, I have had the pleasure of attending several holiday events during the month of December, and I always enjoy meeting with you during this time of the year. As we face another holiday season during the pandemic, we all need to ensure we are doing everything we can to keep each other safe and healthy.

It is important to remember to take care of your mental health and wellness. Our Mental Health resources page on halton.ca links to great resources available in Halton. I encourage you to share this information with family, friends and colleagues. If you or someone you love needs support this holiday season, the Halton Region branch of the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) offers free telephone counselling by calling 289-291-5396 as well as other mental health and addiction supports. If you know someone who is experiencing a mental health crisis, the Halton Regional Police Service Crisis Outreach and Support Team (COAST) is vital resource available to Halton residents. This team of health care workers and HRPS officers are trained in mental health and crisis intervention, and are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week by calling 1-877-825-9011. To learn more about COAST, please visit the Halton Regional Police Service’s website.
 
Thank you to Halton Region staff for another great year
Like 2020, this has been another year of responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. This year, we achieved incredible milestones in the delivery of COVID-19 vaccines to the community with one of the highest vaccination rates in Ontario. With this great progress, many of us will be able to gather in-person with loved ones this year. I strongly encourage everyone to continue to follow provincial guidelines on in-person capacity limits and maintain physical distancing measures.

I would like to thank our Public Health team, all of our vaccination clinic staff and everyone who are continuing to work behind the scenes for their tremendous efforts towards this achievement. I would also like to recognize our staff that have continued to deliver over 86 per cent of Regional programs and services to the community throughout the pandemic. I am incredibly proud and thankful for the hard work done by all our staff.

Essential Regional services will remain available over the holidays. Most Regional facilities will be closed from Friday, December 24 until Tuesday, January 4. For assistance, please visit halton.ca, email accesshalton@halton.ca or call 311. Thank you to all staff continuing to deliver essential Regional services over the holidays and those responding to the COVID-19 pandemic.

I would like to thank everyone in Halton for keeping our community a great place to live, work, raise a family and retire this year. Merry Christmas and happy New Year from my family to yours—I look forward to working with you in 2022!