Nicolas is a very social person and always enjoys being with people, and so ICSS knew that MentorAbility would be a great way to explore jobs that involve engaging the public.
ICSS used the MentorAbility program to engage The Westin Ottawa to arrange a mentorship for Nicolas in a Greeter role and they were more than happy to accommodate.
From a presentation to the CASE board of directors about a mentorship idea, to a continued conversation over coffee the next morning, sprung the innovative idea to connect employers and job-seekers and create beneficial mentorship opportunities.
Pilot projects emerged in British Columbia and Saskatchewan, with growing popularity, and MentorAbility success stories started to spread! In 2019, CASE received federal funding and MentorAbility began a powerful national initiative.
When Michael came to Performance Plus Rehabilitative Care Inc. (PPRC) and the Inclusion Alliance to find a new job, he already had work experience stocking shelves in a grocery store. Michael wanted to work in the produce section of a grocery store next, but he was concerned he might not have the skills to do so.
Lacey was interested in exploring a career in after school programming. After learning about a potential mentorship opportunity from the Vocational Training Centre manager, the MentorAbility New Brunswick team coordinated a meeting between Lacey and Amanda, the director of the local Boys and Girls Club. Amanda provided a tour of the facility and later introduced Lacey to the afterschool program supervisor.
Having recently graduated university with a degree in Applied Economics, Doug was more than ready to jump into his career; but, Covid made for an uncertain job market and he was unsure of his next step toward employment. Thankfully, Doug looked into his university’s career counselling program and they referred him to MentorAbility — a partnership that ultimately landed Doug a great job with a big Tech company!
When Basel came to March of Dimes Canada (MODC) for help finding employment, he wanted to work full-time as a Farm Hand. Basel grew up in Syria where he worked on a farm his whole life. When he moved to Canada in 2016, however, he faced numerous barriers to employment including a lack of formal training, no Canadian job experience and deafness. With all these barriers in his way, it was not surprising that he struggled to secure employment.
This year we are trying something new – a virtual conference!
