Vice President of Inclusion BC attends 2nd World Supported Employment Conference

Hi there!

It has been a while.  Sometimes,  it takes me a while to strike up the motivation to write a blog after a big, exciting event happens; if I’m being honest! Sorry! Today, though, I wanted to tell you about my latest adventure with Inclusion BC; attending the 2022 2nd World Supported Employment Conference this past June in Vancouver.  It was like the Inclusion BC Conference I went to last year, only, in this one, people from all over the world came, and it was based on getting people who have diverse abilities employed..It was amazing  to see all the different work  opportunities for people who  diverse abilities in different countries! 


My mom came to Vancouver with me. She is my favorite travel partner. We always have so much fun together, and I’m so grateful that she is able and willing to accompany me on all my amazing adventures!


After a smooth plane ride to Vancouver, mom and I had a bit of free time before the conference started, which we didn’t have last year, so it was really nice! We got to explore the beautiful and big city of Vancouver, and even take a guided horse drawn carriage ride through Stanley Park; a place I have always wanted to visit. The park and its history is amazing, and our tour guide was so knowledgeable. Mom and I were impressed at  how much of the history of the city she knew, and how much she loved the horses she worked with. She even let me sit right beside her. 


I am very proud to say that this was my first conference as the Vice President. I definitely felt like I had more responsibility this time, with my new title. My mom and I were so well taken care of on our trip. I would like to give a big thankyou to the staff and team of Inclusion BC for helping make everything run so smoothly. They booked our airline tickets and our hotel, made sure I  had wheelchair assistance at the airport, made sure I was prepared for our board meeting with my Vice President notes and they even rented what I like to call a “plush”(very comfortable wheelchair for me!) that was waiting for us at our very cool hotel, The Sheraton Wall Center.  Thank you Inclusion BC! You are always very generous!

 

     At the end of the conference, we had a fancy dinner at a very cool night club called The Commodore. It was incredible to be sitting in a historic building where legendary singers, such as Tina Turner, performed. 

We listened to a band called “Queer as Funk. They did an AMAZING job of  covering  songs from the 60's and 70’s, which both my mom and I love!


It was an incredible trip;  another one I didn’t want to end. I am so grateful to the staff and the rest of the board members of Inclusion BC for making these conference experiences happen, and for having enough belief in me to appoint me to Inclusion BC’s new  Vice President.  I also want to give a special shoutout to Bendina Miller, who, sadly.  is leaving the board. Thank you for nominating me to sit on the board. It is an honor to have worked with you.  Thank you also for your passion and commitment to helping make the world more inclusive for everyone!


   It’s a thrill to go on these adventures!  The link below leads to an article done by Invermere’s local Pioneer, written by Julia Magsombo, that goes into more details about the World Employment Conference . I loved telling Julia  about the trip, and she did a great job of capturing my experience. Enjoy the read. 




https://www.columbiavalleypioneer.com/inclusion-bc-heralds-employment-conference/ 





https://www.pentictonherald.ca/spare_news/article_3e36a893-7647-56eb-9636-f1bd22cece32.html

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