Violence Prevention Grey Bruce has announced the hiring of a new coordinator.
Jon Farmer fills the vacancy left by Colleen Purdon, who coordinated the committee for 20 years before retiring last fall.
Farmer was born and raised in Owen Sound but left the region to attend university in British Columbia. He has been working in the violence prevention field since returning in 2015.
He facilitates the Men’s Program’s Partner Assault Response groups, helped to coordinate the recent Know Me(n) Better conference in Owen Sound, organized the 2016 Into the Open art workshops addressing sexual violence, and is a regular speaker with the Canadian Mental Health Association’s youth education program.
The Violence Prevention Grey Bruce committee brings more than 30 community services and organizations together to share expertise, conduct research, and raise community awareness about violence in the two counties.
Jon Farmer joins the committee at a busy time as Violence Prevention Grey Bruce is currently conducting Grey Bruce’s first survey on sexual violence. All residents of Grey and Bruce counties are encouraged to complete the survey because sexual violence affects everyone, directly or indirectly.
The survey is open until February 23, is available online and will help to inform the development of local services and policies.
To participate in the on-going survey about sexual violence, visit www.violencepreventiongreybruce.com and follow Violence Prevention Grey Bruce on Facebook.