projects that have made a difference.

158982631_2984396908471791_6402746306388787521_n.png

rise up

Rise Up is a program I created with a wonderful woman, Karli Hedlund, at Scottish United Soccer Club. The program is designed for the young female athletes in our programs to have a safe space to communicate and share what is important to them and what they desire from their soccer experience. The purpose of the program is also to empower young girls to embrace who they are, appreciate the community of other female athletes around them, build their confidence and leadership skills, and see and celebrate their unique personal value.

93659786_10163478833695333_6408648847005843456_n.jpg

women’s online summit

The pandemic was slowly seeping into our lives, and we were home a lot when I started getting the message to create this summit. It started off as nudges that I continuously ignored. But then the messages became frequent and more persistent. So, I created this Women’s Summit in 2020 to celebrate the many incredible women who are also our neighbours and to share some of their wisdom and inspiration during a time of lockdown and stillness. Covid has been a period of possibility and daydreaming of new futures. I wanted to help the women I knew and didn’t know to see that they, too, could pursue a dream and make a difference.

When I finally said “yes” to this inspiration, the trigger date to the completion date was only two weeks and four days. It came together like a dream and helped a lot of women. I’m still not entirely clear why I had to do it, though I have my suspicions. And I trust the universe completely.

Motherhood Course One Poster.jpg

empowered motherhood

When I saw a need for mothers to feel seen and heard in an exploration of ease and grace within the context of parenting other humans, I reached out and suggested to a friend who runs courses that she could create something for these mothers. She told me that she would not do and that I should (she was very lovely and generous about it). So I did.

I had once been in a space of feeling the bottom was coming in fast and hard, and I changed my situation dramatically. I had a lot to share, and so I created a platform to share it.

Motherhood can be hard. Being empowered with it definitely takes the sharp edges off.

FORT McMURRAY April 2016.png

fire relief fundraising

In 2016, northern Alberta was in flames. The city of Fort McMurray 444 kms north of Edmonton was fully evacuated; 88,000 people left it a ghost town and had to find temporary relief housing in various places throughout the province. It was a scary and desperate time for many people.

I was the president of the Angels Soccer Club in Edmonton during that emergency, and I saw that there was something we could do. In two short weeks, I created a silent auction hosted by three partnering soccer clubs that was supported by many wonderful volunteers. We raised a few dollars short of $4000 for the Fort McMurray Youth Soccer Club so they could get their programs running and bring some sort of normalcy back to the kids in the northern Alberta city once they were allowed to return to their homes.

PYAI Holding Image for Website 2.jpg

project you are important

On November 30, 2016, I shared the message that people are important with hundreds of people in hundreds of ways: billboards, sandwich boards, magnets placed in bus stations and on doorframes at the university, personalized messages and videos shared on social media, bookmarks tucked into random pages at public libraries, business cards handed out at the mall (I got in trouble for that one), and dozens upon dozens of conversations with people I had never met. I enrolled dozens of people to help me share the message, and I saw random posts and conversations—including a conversation on the radio—about the signs I had put up around the city. It was a beautiful learning experience.

Publication1.jpg

weehumans

With a partner, I created this non-profit organisation to support inner city school kids to experience sport accomplishments, leadership opportunities, and community contribution projects. The purpose of WeeHumans was to help kids see that each and every one of them has value to add to our world and that there are people who care about them and will help them see their incredible value.