Calgary anti-bullying charity in need of financial help to keep programs alive

A Calgary charitable organization known for its anti-bullying outreach and advocacy work amongs youth and students across the country and worldwide is in desperate need of funds to keep its programs running.

“It started as me sharing my own story, but as the requests came in, obviously the expenses went up in order to get to the schools and get registered as a charity,” said Tad Milmine, founder of Bullying Ends Here.

The organization was created 12 years ago by the Calgary police officer, who has done presentations for more than 1.5 million students in Canada, the United States and Europe.

His messaging has resulted in more than 120,000 of those students reaching back out to him to share their positive experiences, and it even led to 72 lives being saved in critical cases where crisis support was needed.

Milmine has applied for dozens of corporate and government grants to keep his program going but continued to get rejection letters.

In 2021, he also applied for a $40,000 Canada Emergency Business Account (CEBA) loan due to the COVID-19 pandemic cancelling the vast majority of his in-school presentations.

“There's a lot of big corporate grants that are out there, but you're talking eight to 12 hours of putting together what they request and when you're doing that, the odds of you getting accepted or approved for the funding is very, very low,” said Milmine.

“But it was always about ‘kids first,’ especially junior high and high school. I'll deal with the money you know later so I put it on a credit card or I'd pay out of pocket. It just becomes so difficult when you've tried so hard and all you want to do is make a positive difference in a young person's life and it’s money that prevents it.”

Milmine, a proud inclusivity advocate for the LGBTQ2S+ community and an openly gay man himself started Bullying Ends Here when he learned the news of a 15-year-old Ottawa boy who took his own life after he was teased at school.

Jamie Hubley was a figure skater and the only openly gay boy in his school at the time. Milmine now shares his story in each of his presentations.

“Hearing that news is what lit the fire for all of this,” he said.

“It brought everything up about my childhood and how I felt alone and how there was no one who would ever understand and of course, we never used to speak about mental illness back in the day.”

Milmine’s inspirational presentations have since touched thousands upon thousands of students, some of whom message him years later to share the positive impact.

Adam Ernst, a now 22-year-old Calgary who man had the opportunity to attend several presentations in high school, credits the charity with helping him overcome some of life’s greatest obstacles.

“When you hear Tad speak, it’s just such a powerful message and when we talk about Bullying Ends Here, everyone thinks it’s one track that it’s just in schools, but it isn’t just about kids,” said Ernst.

“It’s really about being a good person overall and seeing Tad for the first time inspired me to be the person that I am, to follow my dream of being a firefighter and serving my community in more ways.”

Others like 15-year-old Jayden Domenjoz say Bullying Ends Here has given him the extra confidence he needs in his daily life.

“It really touched me to hear his story when I met him, he’s more than just a police officer, he’s really helping people out,” Domenjoz said.

“Tad is such a nice guy and it reflects on you how he acts, when he acts kind, you want to be kind as well. When you include people at school you can make them feel so much better, some people are going through mental health issues but when you can talk to them and be friends with them, they can probably get better.”

As for Milmine, he says he will continue to do as many presentations for students as he can out of the goodness of his heart and out of his own pocket.

He says his greatest achievement, however, will be knowing that he’s made just a small difference in the life of a student struggling with mental health challenges.

“I've been doing this for 12 years, and the kiddos that heard me a decade ago aren't kids anymore. They randomly reach out and say ‘I just wanted to let you know, you know, your message still hits me today.’”

“There are no words to describe what that means to me because it gives me that empowerment to want to give back and speak to more and more students.”

Visit Bullying Ends Here’s website to learn more about the charity and donate.