<div>Momentum Counselling has been offering life-saving mental health services to Edmonton's men through the Anchor Men’s Group for over a decade. The group, led by Dr. David St. Arnault, a Registered Psychologist, along with a team of Registered Therapists, clinical interns and volunteers, provides essential weekly support to men facing a variety of mental health challenges. Since 2018, Anchor Men’s Group has been supported through Edmonton’s Living Hope initiative—a community plan to prevent suicide. Over time, the group has become a critical resource for men’s mental health in Edmonton, expanding its services to meet a growing demand and now branching out into surrounding communities.
</div>
<div>This proposal seeks funding to continue offering two weekly Anchor Men’s Groups (virtual and in-person) for one full year, ensuring that no participant is turned away due to a lack of resources. The requested funding will cover facilitator costs, room rental, and administration expenses, totaling $80,000.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><strong><em>The Anchor Men’s Group: A Lifeline for Men</em></strong>
</div>
<div>The Anchor Men’s Group serves men in Edmonton and surrounding areas, providing a safe, supportive space for them to discuss issues such as relationship breakdowns, anxiety, depression, trauma, substance use, and grief. Men are statistically less likely to seek mental healthcare, and Anchor addresses this by offering a service free of charge, with no barriers to participation. Many of the men who attend have shared that Anchor is the only place where they feel truly understood and supported.
</div>
<div>The group meets a critical need in the community, particularly for men who feel isolated or overwhelmed by life's challenges. With weekly attendance averaging 50 participants, and nearly 2,500 participants over the course of a year, Anchor serves as a vital support system for those who might otherwise fall through the cracks of the traditional mental health system.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><strong><em>Participant Testimonials</em></strong>
</div>
<div><strong>“It’s great to see new guys onboarding for the first time, who say they had no idea this group existed. It points to the pain that men are going through, where there appears to be few resources to simply share in confidence in a safe place. We need this group, it is a lifeline.”</strong>
</div>
<div><strong>“Life saving in many ways for men! This is much needed.”</strong>
</div>
<div><strong>“Tonight was my first group and it felt like coming home.”</strong>
</div>
<div>These testimonials underscore the life-changing—and often life-saving—impact that Anchor has had on men in the community.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><strong><em>Impact and Expansion:</em></strong>
</div>
<div>Since its inception, Anchor has served thousands of men. In 2023, the demand for services continued to rise, prompting the expansion to two weekly groups—one virtual and one in-person. Both groups have been well-attended, a testament to the growing need for mental health support in Edmonton. Additionally, the program's reputation has spread beyond the city, with surrounding communities expressing interest in offering Anchor Men’s in their communities. After a successful pilot in the spring, Momentum Counseling is offering its first Anchor group in St. Albert.
</div>
<div>While the program’s expansion is a positive step, it comes with logistical and financial challenges. In recent months, the need for more space has grown, requiring Momentum Counseling to secure additional room rentals to accommodate the in-person group.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><strong><em>Why Funding is Critical</em></strong>
</div>
<div>The generous support from the City of Edmonton has allowed the Anchor Men’s Group to grow and flourish. However, the need continues to surpass available resources. With an increasing number of men attending, and the expansion of services to other communities, the program is at capacity and risks turning people away if additional funding is not secured.
</div>
<div>Your support will enable Momentum Counselling to continue offering two weekly groups for a full year, ensuring that men have access to the help they need when they need it most. Without this service, many of the men attending Anchor would have nowhere else to turn for support.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><strong><em>Budget Breakdown</em></strong>
</div>
<div>To sustain the two groups per week for the next year, the following funds are requested:
</div>
<div>Facilitation: $61,200
</div>
<div>This includes compensation for Dr. St. Arnault and seven contracted facilitators, who manage the groups and provide the necessary psychological support.
</div>
<div>Room Rental/Rent: $11,000
</div>
<div>As demand has grown, so has the need for additional space. The requested funding will ensure that we can continue to rent space to accommodate the in-person group.
</div>
<div>Hosting &amp; Administration: $7,800
</div>
<div>This covers administrative costs, including group coordination, registration, and virtual hosting.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>Total Request: $80,000
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>The Anchor Men’s Group is a proven, life-saving initiative that provides much-needed mental health support to men in Edmonton and beyond. The program has grown significantly, demonstrating its effectiveness and the profound impact it has on participants. With your financial support, we can ensure that this essential resource continues to operate, expands to meet growing demand, and reaches even more men in need.
</div>
<div>Thank you for your consideration of this funding proposal. Together, we can continue to save lives and support men on their journey to mental well-being.
</div>
<div><br />
</div>
<div>For anyone who prefers to give outside of GoFundMe, you can here: 
</div>
<div><a href="https://momentumcounselling.org/donate-today/" target="_blank" class="" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">https://momentumcounselling.org/donate-today/</a>
</div>

Carla Kruger

Tim Mushey

Anonymous

Doug Lemermeyer

Chris Florko

Judy Brandt

Kimberly Robbie

Save this life-saving resource for men of Edmonton & beyond!

platform

Platform is iOS

Android

Adyen Google Pay Development Audience

$opt_dummy_attribute

English only

Deprecate Stripe Legacy

dyn_template_ids

Adyen V6 Bene Transfer & MyMoney Campaign Organizers - test01

Bene transfer V6 and AdyenV6MyMoney Campaign Organizers - production

OneTrust next-app audience

fundCountryCode

NextDoor Share Option Users

Fundraisers with Reactions feature capability

fundCurrencyCode

US + Non-charity COs Only

locale

fund country is US and user language is English

personId

comms-internal-person-ids

Enhanced Story Experience Users

Suggested Goal Experience Users

user language is English and fund country: US, AU, DK, FI, IE, NO, SE, CA, GB; 

Poster share - new funds eligible (newest 9/18)

Streaming widgets beta user

paymentProcessor

3DS payment method

user language is English and fundCountry: US, AU, DK, FI, IE, NO, SE, CA, GB; 

currencyCode

Money Box Donation List Prompt Experiment Audience

GoFundMe Employees

ipAddress

Mark Rieth IP Address

Version 9.2.0 and above

Fund is in English speaking country

desktop

Android v12.11.0 and above

Platform is Android

paymentMethodType

checkoutType

Payment method type group to be vaulted on success

admin pr kit prod

EUR Donation Upsell

Share Text generation Skip Fundraiser

(prod) new funds eligible for amp12 (UGC gallery)

fintrac_cad_idv_form_v2 audience

paymentProcessorAccountId

fallback mode accounts

proCampaignId

p2p legacy startfundraising page

AMP24 New Funds Only PROD (DO NOT MODIFY)

countryCode

charityId

UKCharities

Federated Search Internal Testing

route.pathname community

US Donation Upsell audience 

Auto Thanks Feature Audience

Supporter Comments Eligible Funds

International Only

fundId

braze fundraiser group 

Payment Identity Transfers ATO Risk Check (Targeted) - Production

Fundraiser Saved Payment Method Rate Limit Bypass (Production)

leaderboard-partner-id-audience-givepanel

Version 9.2.1 and above

AUD Donation Upsell audience

fundraiserCountryCode is US/EN

Active Fundraiser - Smart Default Cadence

DAF Internal

Vault on success card payment method

Platform is iOS v11.0.0 and above

Desktop users

Person ids

United States (US) users

allow yuno fundraisers for test

Mexico country code

Posters INTL

NPO Profile Opted-In

iOS at or above 12.4.0

non-US recurring donors

Canada Campaign Owner Group

Fundraiser Without Meta Link

Scheduler payment tester gorup

charityCommunityId

Charities allow to be claimed unclaimed (PRD)

Canada (CA) users

UC Tipping v20250115 International

pymk_production_xplr_fe_team

Android at or above 12.2.0

Profile photo entry point audience

smart goals (fundraiser/manage) on test01

Activity Tracking v1 Beta Testing

start gfm intl allowed locales

Platform is iOS v11.2.0 and above

NPO upsell education category

unclaimed charities

prod_ach_audience

AI Chatbot Audience

amp13 only new funds (prod) (anyword auto)

UC Flow Enabled (Prod)

Payment Identity Beneficiary Verification - Production

shared notification bell audience

Custom users

ach frontend audience

Android v11.0.0 and above

Users Receiving Payments Paused Notifications

smart goals test01

Manage Coach - US English Organizers Only + new funds only

Team EGG - IP Address list

NPO recommendations prod

Fundraiser Without Instagram Deep Link

Native 11.4.0 and above

UC Tipping v20250107

Users Receiving Braze KYC Validation Failed

Native 11.3.0 and above

ai_title_page

anyword

openai

control

manual_entry

userEmail

template_id

userId

fundUrl

isCharityCo

email

appVersion

shouldBucketIntoExperiment

partnerId

donationCadence

isActiveFundraiser

isPartner

isMobile

npoProfileOptIn

fundIsLinkedWithMeta

hasSessionDonation

categoryGroup

isCampaignOwner

fundHasInstagramDeepLink

Native 11.4.0 and higher

New funds eligible - Video Sharing (PROD)

GB Donation Upsell audience 

Auto Thanks V3 Rollout Audience

Thank you V3 testing whitelist

isRecurringFriendly

Is Recurring Friendly

Excluded funds - Video Sharing

NPO upsell animals category

NPO upsell disaster relief category

Logged In Users

CH Donation Upsell audience

Android v10.6.0 and above

NPO upsell essential needs category

NPO upsell medical category

userCurrencyCode

Localized Currency

NPO upsell cancer category

v11.5.0 and above

testAudience

pathname

Survicate

appVersion is at or above 12.8.0

Non-charity fund

isChallengeFundraiser

challenge-fundraisers

Payment Identity Launch Verification - Production

New funds eligible - Posters v2

CAD Donation Upsell Audience

Braze Email Tester

NPO Profile Opted-Out

iOS App Version

hasKnownDonors

PYMK has donors

iOS v12.3.0 and above

Save this life-saving resource for men of Edmonton & beyond!

Still $6,755 to go. Help us build momentum.