History
In 1969, a group of community-minded volunteers – Dr. Paul Termansen, Professor Ben Chud, Archie Baker, Jon Jessiman, Tony Morrison and Betty Tarrant (who also became the first Executive Director) – saw a need in our community and believed that a listening service could help people in distress. Together, they founded the Crisis Centre so that those in pain would always have a place to turn.
With a first year budget of $30,000 and only one person on staff, the Crisis Centre was originally located in a medical-dental building at Broadway and Burrard.
The United Way quickly recognized the essential value of the Distress Line service, and the Crisis Centre became one of its member agencies.
1970
The Crisis Centre moved to Alexandra Neighborhood House at West 7th and Burrard.
1971
The Centre inaugurated its ‘Flying Squad,’ through which we dispatched volunteers to assist people in crisis situations, and intervene on their behalves. This was abandoned several years later as a high risk/low return operation.
Volunteers drove around the city in the “Big Yellow Bus” looking for people in distress, and bringing them back to a hostel set up on the top floor of the Centre.
The Crisis Centre moved to 1946 West Broadway, first as tenants; later as owners.
1978
The Community Information Centre was developed. This would later be spun off to become Information Services Vancouver (part of the Tri-Line operation).
1979
A $90,000 grant from the BC Lottery Fund enabled the Crisis Centre to retire our mortgage.
1983
Urgent Messages, our first video on teen suicide prevention was produced. This video was used widely throughout North America.
1986
The Community Education School Based Suicide Prevention Program was developed after a Vancouver youth died by suicide and his friends turned to the Crisis Centre for help. The Community Education program provides youth with the skills to recognize and deal with emotional stress and suicide warning signs and aims to de-stigmatize suicide among youth.
1989
An endowment fund was established with a $10,000 seed contribution from the Bentall Foundation and matching grants from the Vancouver Foundation.
1994
Choices, our second video on teen suicide prevention, was produced. The video received the Golden Sheaf as Canada’s top Public Service Sector video (Broadcast or Non-Broadcast) of 1994 and the Gold Medal from the International Television & Video Producers Association as best non-broadcast Public Service Sector video produced anywhere in the world in 1994. Since then, Choices has reached hundreds of thousands of students around the world.
1995
The Professional Development program was created. The program consists of a series of workshops given on a fee-for-service basis to corporations, other social service agencies and community organizations.
1997
In October 1997, the Crisis Centre moved its distress line, community education, and administrative programs to a computerized system.
The Crisis Centre and the South Fraser Regional Crisis line were founding members of the British Columbia Crisis Line Association, and published their first newsletter, The Frontline. They began planning BCCLA’s first annual conference, which was held in October 1998.
2001
In August 2001, a toll-free distress line service to the Sunshine Coast, Powell River and area, and the Sea-to-Sky Corridor was created.
Thanks to $100,000 raised at the 10th Anniversary Ismaili Walk, the Crisis Centre began to provide its distress services in over 140 languages through the Language Line services (a phone interpretation service).
2002
The computer system at the Crisis Centre was upgraded, including the implementation of customized middleware for the Distress Line and a fundraising database.
A dedicated, toll-free TTY phone line for the hearing-impaired community was established.
2003
A formal program evaluation of Choices Youth Suicide Prevention Program and video was conducted.
2004
After a 70% drop in calls to our distress line from 13-24 year old youth between 2001 and 2003, youth focus groups told us that they prefer using computers connected to the internet as a means of communication. As a result, YouthInBC.com, a web-based hotline for youth, was implemented in 2004. It has been very successful, offering the same empathy, confidentiality and security as the phone line, but in a format that youth feel more comfortable using.
In September of 2004, the Crisis Intervention & Suicide Prevention Centre of BC partnered with Kelowna Community Resources, Mission Community Services, the Crisis Prevention, Intervention & Information Centre for Northern BC and the NEED Crisis & Information Line (Victoria) to create 1-800-SUICIDE. This province-wide distress line was inspired by the “Hope Line Network” in the US. 1-800-SUICIDE allows the 5 accredited member centres to work together in answering calls to this line, ensuring that every call from any part of BC at any time of day will always be answered by a trained volunteer.
2007
The Crisis Centre produced the Choices2: Reaching Out video and workshop package to enhance its Community Education presentations. Choices2 replaced the old video, Choices, and includes documentary interviews along with an updated feature story and information.
2008
YouthInBC.com was redesigned and restructured to be more youth-friendly and easier to navigate.
2009
The Crisis Centre, in partnership with the BC government, the Crisis Line Association of British Columbia, Vancouver Police Department, West Vancouver Police Department and TELUS, installed and activated six crisis hotline phones on the Lions Gate Bridge, the first of their kind in Canada.