Our mission is to inspire respect and equality for people with a developmental disability by promoting community knowledge, organizational excellence and individual quality of life. In 2017, the members of two boards of directors voted to amalgamate Community Living Central Highlands and Community Living Peterborough to form Community Living Trent Highlands. They made this choice neither out of necessity nor mandate, but rather because together we will be stronger, brighter and more responsive to the immense needs that exist in the futures of our communities. It is a huge undertaking to amalgamate the long-standing practices, processes, traditions and cultures of two agencies. The members of the new board of directors for Community Living Trent Highlands are up to the challenge. We are fully aware of the mammoth task that we face; yet, we feel a sense of excitement as we begin to harmonize what is best of both organizations. The three communities served by Community Living Trent Highlands have had enduring relationships with their former agencies, and each brings with it a legacy of inclusion, innovation and responsiveness. In the pages of this report you will read the accomplishments of the recently amalgamated Community Living Central Highlands (formerly Haliburton County and Kawartha Lakes) and Community Living Peterborough. An integral part of an agency like ours is its partnerships and presence in the community. It is clear in these pages that connections and collaborations are numerous and celebrated. As our three former agencies were beginning in the late 50’s and early 60’s, families and advocates were demanding change and something better for their loved ones. Now in 2017, as we are forming the new Community Living Trent Highlands, the climate is similar. As a sector we are striving for something better, learning year after year about deeper inclusion, community development and belonging. Our new agency will continue build on our legacies, and will strive to create bridges to community and networks of inclusion in Haliburton, Kawartha Lakes and Peterborough. The future is bright and filled with possibility as Community Living Trent Highlands brings 173 years of combined experience to meet the challenges of the future for the people and communities we serve.
