Sarah Covey (nee Cockram), the owner and Clinical Director of CWC, was born and raised in Elmvale and had a vision to bring wide-spread wellness resources to her hometown, given her deep roots in the community. In her various volunteer and teaching capacities locally, she has been serving the area for many years and has a genuine passion to see people loved well and thriving. 

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It’s no secret that mental health is an important topic these days, especially in the wake of the Covid crisis. People are perhaps more than ever needing access to resources and support for themselves and their families.  Many challenges that preceded pandemic times were exacerbated by the isolation, economic uncertainty, and relationship strain that was a result of lockdown measures and Covid responses throughout the course of the last two years. People were feeling afraid and alone and the unpredictability of the global pandemic brought about a variety of concerns for a wide range of people from a mental health perspective.  Anxiety and depression increased in their frequency and scope along with many other mental health concerns and people were (and certainly still are) struggling to find a healthy way through.

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Ongoing mental health needs and the increasing conversation around the de-stigmatization of mental health concerns ultimately gave rise to the birth of Covey Wellness Centre. Sarah, the owner, left her teaching job at Elmvale District High School in June of 2015 to pursue her Master’s in Counselling Psychology in an effort to respond to the increasing need, even at that time, for psychotherapy options in the area.  She began to see clients in her home office initially and as her business grew she signed a lease in January 2020 on Queen Street with a view to offer a wellness bookshop and in-person psychotherapy services under the name A New Leaf. Of course, once March 2020 came along, that plan was interrupted and almost all the psychotherapy services pivoted to online and retail was closed and this pattern of business closure continued over that two year term and it was difficult to get consistent momentum and presence in the physical space. 

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Despite the challenges that Covid brought, A New Leaf continued to add therapists to its team and began to serve more and more individuals and couples in the community. With our online capacity, we also began serving clients all over the country. This growth led to a stunning rebranding to Covey Wellness Centre as a way of encapsulating the more complete vision to have a holistic approach to mental health and wellness and to provide products and services that promote overall well being, both proactively and reactively. 

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Sarah’s vision for the wellness bookshop space (which was, unfortunately, not fully realized at the Queen Street location due to the limitations of Covid) was that it would be a place of gathering and comfort; a peaceful haven where all would be welcomed whether an appointment for therapy was booked or not.  She wanted to provide resources in the form of helpful books, journals, essential oils, teas, and other beautiful and toxin free self-care products that could be accessible to the community at any time. She wanted people to feel at home in the space and experience it as a refuge from the stressors of life and to decrease the stigma surrounding mental health and wellness by making a place that was open to all. 

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And that’s precisely what Sarah and her team have created in their new, more beautiful, expanded location at 12 B Stone Street, right behind Elmvale Dental Care. Sarah has hand-picked and assembled a wonderful team of Registered Psychotherapists, counsellors, and wellness specialists in response to the ever-growing need in the community that Sarah calls home. 

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While the scope of their practice is beyond the facility walls with an array of clients who are finding support through online connections across Canada, CWC’s heart is especially for the Springwater area residents and surrounding communities. Covey Wellness Centre wants people to feel warmly welcomed in the therapeutic space whenever they wish to visit.