The Canadian Psychiatric Research Foundation’s (CPRF) Silver Dinner 2008 will feature keynote speaker Rona Maynard, former editor of Chatelaine and author of the long-awaited memoir My Mother's Daughter. The event is to be held at Toronto’s Four Seasons Hotel on Tuesday, November 25th, 2008. The title sponsor is TD Waterhouse Canada.
Ms. Maynard is a recipient of the National Champion of Mental Health Award from the Canadian Alliance on Mental Illness and Mental Health. Her story is full of surprises. For years she never imagined she could reach the top of her field. She battled shyness and chronic depression. Ms. Maynard struggled to reconcile the pressures of her work with her role as a mother, wife and friend. Often she feared that she was failing. She had to learn – through therapy and personal commitment – to live each day as if it mattered. She didn’t set out to change people’s lives, but that’s what started to happen when she wrote from the heart about changing her own life. Her readers say that through Ms. Maynard’s storytelling, they gained a new perspective on their own lives.
Staunton Bowen and Elizabeth Vanstone Silver Dinner 2008 Co-Chairs say, “We’re thrilled to have Ms. Maynard join us this year. As a nationally known speaker with a great story, we’re certain to learn an awful lot.”
CPRF’s annual Silver Dinner routinely attracts more than 350 supporters, volunteers and corporate and community leaders. Together, they hear about challenges and activities relating to psychiatric research and medicine, as well as personal stories of struggle, triumph and compassion. Funds raised during the event will support mental illness and addiction research.
About CPRF:
The Canadian Psychiatric Research Foundation (CPRF) is a national charitable organization founded in 1980. CPRF is the only national charity with a focus of funding mental illness and addiction research at universities, research institutes and teaching hospitals across the country.
CPRF’S mission:
To improve the well being of Canadians by funding mental health and addiction research to build healthier lives. We accomplish this by:
•Raising and distributing funds for mental health and addiction research.
•Translating the knowledge gained from mental health and addiction research.
•Advocating for mental health and addiction research investment.
About Mental Illness and Addiction:
•Mental illness affects one in five Canadians.
•In Canada, 60-65% of all disability insurance claims involve mental disorders.
•Mental health claims are now the leading cause of short and long-term disability leaves – ahead of cancer, musculoskeletal and back problems, and accidents.
•Twenty percent of working women in Canada have been diagnosed or show signs of depression or anxiety. Of these women, only 35% are likely to discuss their symptoms/feelings with their employers.
For more information contact:
Andrea Swinton
Director, Fund Development and Marketing
Canadian Psychiatric Research Foundation
Telephone: (416) 351-7757 Ext. 22
E-mail: aswinton@cprf.ca.
