At Calgary Counselling Centre, we help people learn to thrive. Since our inception in 1962, we’ve been driven by that purpose to provide the best counselling treatment possible. Not just the best in our community, or our country — but the best you could get anywhere. Here are some key milestones in our history, and major contributions to our community and the counselling field.
The Institute of Family Services and Personal Counselling opens its doors October 1 in the basement of the Central United Church under the direction of Reverend W.E. Mullen.
On January 1, the Pastoral Institute becomes a charitable organization.
Group counselling is introduced.
A sliding fees for service is introduced, ensuring no one is turned away.
We change our name to the Pastoral Institute and receive United Way funding for the first time.
In August, the Institute moves to the sixth floor of the Medical Arts Building.
Rev. Mullen’s son, Paul, joins the Institute to open an office in Forest Lawn.
On April 1, the Institute moves to the Mayfield Building on 8 Avenue SW.
The Institute becomes fully accredited as a training centre by the Canadian Council for Supervised Pastoral Education C.C.S.P.E.
At the request of the Women’s Shelter, the Pastoral Institute introduces the first anger management group program for men in Calgary.
The Institute celebrates 20 years of service in Calgary.
Rev. Donald Gray was appointed executive director of the Pastoral Institute.
Rev. Gordon Hanson becomes executive director.
The Institute introduces the Stress and Anxiety Management program.
The Institute introduces the Children of Divorce program for children ages 3–17 and their parents.
The Institute moves to the United Way building.
"Aerial view of Centre Twelve building, Calgary, Alberta.", 1985-05-22, (CU1144069) by Hall, Jim. Courtesy of Libraries and Cultural Resources Digital Collections, University of Calgary.
The Institute receives the Agency of the Year Award from the United Way.
The Institute moves to 6 Avenue, where it will remain for over 25 years.
The Institute introduces the self-esteem group for women.
Launch of the Eating Disorders program. Renamed Anger Management group program to Responsible Choices, and added the first program specifically for women.
In October, the Pastoral Institute officially changes its name to Calgary Counselling Centre.
Robbie Babins-Wagner becomes executive director.
It’s a new name for the familiar Pastoral Institute. The Institute is now called Calgary Counselling Centre. The name change was revealed at the recent Evening of Discussion about Family Violence, with Marcia Clark and [Chief of Police] Christine Silverberg.
The tragedies of the Columbine and Taber shootings lead to the Centre’s outreach campaign informing Calgarians of the violence prevention programs and counselling services we offer.
Introduction of our Male Victims program, the first in the city for male victims of abuse in an intimate relationship.
The Centre premieres Let’s Talk About Divorce, a video and workbook for the Children of Divorce program.
The Centre launches a pilot program called Managing Depression.
Dr. Scott Miller conducts the first workshop for Outcome-Informed Therapy for Centre staff and therapists in the community.
The Centre receives the Spirits of Gold Award for Inclusiveness and Diversity from United Way Calgary.
Calgary Counselling Centre renovates and expands its 6 Avenue location.
The Centre hosts its first National Depression Screening Day.
We hold the first annual Calgary’s Bravest Men event.
We launch online registration, providing a new way to access counselling.
Introduction of Calgary’s Bravest Men Youth Forum, featuring Justin Berry. We partner with the Calgary Police Service to educate over 1,600 junior high school students about online predators.
In recognition of a generous donation from Richard and Lois Haskayne, Calgary Counselling Centre’s training program becomes the Haskayne Learning Centre for Graduate and Post-Graduate Counselling Studies.
The Centre expands the Strengthening Families Project: Couples Treatment for Domestic Violence and Substance Use, the first of its kind in Calgary.
Calgary Counselling Centre celebrates 50 years of helping our community, and launches its new brand.
In June 2013, our community experiences a historic flood. This crisis has long lasting repercussions, and Calgary Counselling Centre joins local and national organizations offering mental health expertise and assistance. The Centre opens its first satellite Centre in High River, which was particularly affected by the floods and in need of mental health support.
Calgary Counselling Centre CEO Dr. Robbie Babins-Wagner is named the 2015 recipient of the Lieutenant Governor’s Circle on Mental Health and Addiction True Leadership Award.
The Centre moves to its current location in the Kahanoff Centre.
Calgary Counselling Centre CEO Dr. Robbie Babins-Wagner receives the 2016 Grant MacEwan Lifetime Achievement Award through the City of Calgary
In April 2017, The Atlantic publishes the article What Your Therapist Doesn’t Know featuring the work of Robbie Babins-Wagner and the Centre.
The Centre began a pilot project focused on Honour Based Violence to educate the community on the impact and prevalence of honour based violence as well as counsel individuals experiencing this type of abuse.
Robbie Babins-Wagner receives the Lifetime Achievement Inspiration Award for Leadership in Family and Community Safety from the Alberta government.
The Globe and Mail publishes the article “Rethinking therapy: How 45 questions can revolutionize mental health care in Canada”.
Calgary Counselling Centre is the charity of choice for the Willow Park Golf Tournament. A record-breaking $700,000 is raised for the Centre from the Tournament and an anonymous donor.
Robbie Babins-Wagner is featured in the local publication, Avenue Calgary, for the FIT approach and how it is providing outcomes that are surpassing all published benchmarks.
On March 16, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Calgary Counselling Centre transitions to providing all counselling services and programs remotely (online or over the phone). The Centre completes this transition for all clients and counsellors in just 36 hours. Clinical outcomes remained high.
In its first full year working entirely remotely, Calgary Counselling Centre provides a record 47,757 hours of counselling. That is a 21% increase over 2019, the most recent year of fully in-person counselling.
Calgary Counselling Centre turns 60.
To date, Calgary Counselling Centre has seen over 1.1 million people.