After losing $75,000 in funding last year, the Manoir St. Joseph in Campbell’s Bay says its activity programming for senior residents has remained unchanged.
Last April, Manoir staff found out the funding it had been receiving from Quebec’s education ministry through the Centre de services scolaire des Hauts-Bois-de-l’Outaouais (CSSHBO) would be terminated for the next year.
The program paid for three total employees to organize activities at the residence such as educational outings, shopping trips, themed nights (for St. Patrick’s Day, for example) and more.
Once the cuts came down, the Manoir could only pay two employees: one coordinator who works 2.5 days a week as well as one more employee.
General manager Colleen Larivière said the cuts came as a surprise, adding that the funding had helped the Manoir develop offerings for residents.
“We depended on it for seven or eight years,” she said.
Resident Carol Pirie spoke with THE EQUITY after having her nails painted a light shade of pink earlier that day. She said she always looks forward to nail day, just one of the regular activities organized for residents.
“It’s relaxing, and I like to look nice,” she said with a smile.
Larivière said Pirie’s experiences and others are why the Manoir could never consider cutting back on activities. She said the facility intends to maintain its services despite the change in funding.
“It’s a big deal [ . . . ] It’s part of our program, it has to be. We offer that service, and it would never be something that we [would cut],” she said.
She said it took some creativity to free up money in this year’s budget for activities. But since the Manoir is doing this at its own expense, she said it needs to make up the money elsewhere.
“The money’s in there for the activities, but we need to recuperate that somewhere. It was a loss,” she said.
The Manoir recently received a private donation of $5,000 from Robin and Linda Zacharias. Linda’s mother, 90-year-old Rita Pelletier-Blaskie, has been a resident at the home since late last year.
Robin wrote in a letter accompanying the donation that his mother-in-law was struggling with loneliness living alone at home. He said it has been like night and day since she moved into the Manoir.
“Most importantly, [Rita] is no longer bored. And she is happy [ . . . ] forming friendships with both residents and staff,” he wrote.
“We strongly encourage anyone with aging family members or who someday may themselves want a similar place to stay, to protect this invaluable community resource.”
The Manoir will also be raising money to try to cover the lost funds. Larivière said a successful auction last year raised $11,000, while she hopes upcoming bake sales, draws and a 50/50 draw will continue to chip away.
She said the Manoir is always looking for different avenues of funding, working with a consultant to find government grants the facility can apply for.
“We’re always looking. She’s always on the lookout for any potential grants that we could apply for,” she said.
More large expenses are anticipated in the near future. The Manoir building, built in 1967, needs repairs to its septic system and a new floor for the dining room.
“We had to cut the cement in our basement and replace part of the line down there, which cost us $17,000,” Larivière said, adding that the floor will likely cost at least $25,000.
She said donations like the Zacharias’ will “ease the pain” while they continue to fundraise.
CSSHBO spokesperson Monia Lirette said two other seniors’ residences in the Outaouais were affected by the cuts, one in Messines and one in Maniwaki. She said the program, which ended on June 30, 2025, represented a total of $256,095.
Although the new provincial budget was passed last Wednesday (Mar. 18), Larivière said there she has received no indication that the program could return.
Lirette said the school board has received no word on the re-establishment of the program, adding that after a budget is passed they usually do not hear about specific budget allocations until the end of April.
