EGANVILLE – Mike Richard has spent that last 15 years trying to reduce violence within the communities of Renfrew County, working through Living Without Violence Inc. (LWV) in Eganville.
Richard was born in Oshawa to parents who worked in the auto business. His father was a hunter and Richard enjoyed spending time in Algonquin Park. Richard’s first job was in Pembroke as a paint sprayer at Superior Electrics. In 1979, he did some work with the Phoenix Centre, a children’s mental health treatment centre in Pembroke. He decided to go to university.
On his return, he worked at the Phoenix Centre and Women’s Aid for almost 20 years.
In the 1990s, Richard went to the Arctic where he focused on suicide, family violence and addiction issues. He trained people who lived in the community to address those issues, developing the infrastructure for the systems in the community.
In 11 Arctic communities, Richard developed a community justice system by training people who live there to manage that whole process and to take more responsibility for their lives in the communities.
He returned to Renfrew County in 2000. Richard worked on the Petawawa base during the Bosnian-Rwanda-Somalia crisis supporting military families. At that time, Richards also worked for LWV.
LWV was founded in 1983 under the name of the Men’s Project by Oscar Berringer, Ben Hoffman and Dr. Petrini.
Get your April 13, 2016 edition of The Valley Gazette to read the full story.