The Phillips House and Maddie’s Healing Garden
Rotary Club of Willowdale is organizing their annual Community Building Fundraising Event, and this year the Phillips House and Maddie's Healing Garden at North York General Hospital will be the recipients of the funds raised during the Celebrity Dinner on November 6th, 2020.
The Rotary Club of Willowdale is leading the Phillips House & Maddie’s Healing Garden Project, with the help of fellow Rotary Clubs in District 7070. North York General has one of the largest hospital-based eating disorder programs in southern Ontario, serving the communities of Toronto, York Region, Peel Region and beyond. Nearly 3,500 child and adolescent patients visit each year for the treatment of eating disorders. NYG has seen a sharp increase in inpatient visits over the past few years, including a 39% increase in 2018 alone.
A comforting atmosphere with family support is vital for the treatment of eating disorders. Patients in the Day Hospital have access to a communal kitchen at Phillips House, where they can cook and eat together with their families, as they build healthy relationships with food. Since its clinical opening, Phillips House has seen over 6,200 patient visits to a number of sub-specialty programs.
Madeline Grace German Coulter radiated charm, sparkle and light. She brought laughter and energy to every conversation and would brighten a room with her smile. The treasured daughter of Nicole German and Chris Coulter, and beloved big sister to Zachary and Sawyer, Maddie was beautiful, inside and out. Maddie seemed like any other teenage girl. She was popular, athletic, funny and social. However, what was lurking below the surface would alter the course of her family forever. On April 11, 2015, Maddie died suddenly; depression had taken her life at just 14 years old. From their tragedy, Maddie’s family has channelled their grief into creating The Maddie Project to support youth struggling with depression and other mental health related concerns. The Maddie Project is helping to open a dialogue, bringing awareness to the mental health needs of our children, and reducing the stigma of adolescent depression.
If The Maddie Project can encourage a child to ask for help and make support programming and mental health care services more accessible for adolescents in need, then Maddie’s light can carry on. As a major regional provider of child and adolescent mental health care, North York General plays a critical role in the continuum of care provided to children and families in our community and across the GTA. The redevelopment of Phillips House has positioned North York General to re-imagine how child and adolescent mental health care is provided in our community and beyond.
Rotary Club of Willowdale, would like your kind cooperation in making this project a success from 2020 forward. Local businesses and the community can purchase tickets for the Celebrity Dinner event. You can purchase tickets by contacting Rotary Club of Willowdale at telephone 416-986-7875 or email csdoldron@rogers.com.
