Tag: support worker

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April 27, 2021

Natanya Katz is a Canucks Autism Network (CAN) support worker. This past World Autism Day, she was one of nine individuals on the spectrum who shared what autism acceptance means to them in our video with EY:


For every comment or share on the video until Apr 30, EY will donate $2 to CAN.
See the post on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or LinkedIN!

Throughout the month, we have been taking turns expanding on the stories of each of our video participants. So we asked Natanya: What drives her to work for CAN? What should people know about autism? And why is autism acceptance important?

“It’s important to accept, be open to everyone and enjoy everyone’s unique and individual personalities and abilities,” Natanya said.

As a young woman on the spectrum, her lived experience fuels the understanding and compassion she brings to our programs. Natanya has been with CAN for just over two years. Before being hired as a support worker, she started as a volunteer, supporting kids in our summer programs.

In addition to supporting CAN camps & weekly programs, Natanya (2nd from right) has also volunteered at fundraisers & family experiences!

“My favourite memory at CAN was Overnight Camp on Keats. I remember encouraging one of the campers to let me take him out on the water in a kayak. We saw dozens of seals. His excitement was so rewarding.”

That summer alone, Natanya volunteered in two week-long summer day camps and a full three days at Keats – tirelessly supporting our participants in a range of scenarios.

The following season, Natanya jumped in the pool to support our weekly swimming lessons. Overseeing our swim program at our JCC location in Vancouver was Kaitlin Sterndale-Bennett. Recalling Natanya’s time as a volunteer, Kaitlin had particularly high praise:

“I cannot speak highly enough about Natanya. As a volunteer, she was naturally responsive to the kids, excellent with our visual tools and calm under pressure. She was one of the strongest individuals in the pool.”

Needless to say, Natanya was quickly hired on as a support worker. Her tireless energy, natural ability and clear dedication to helping others are such a benefit to our participants.

Today, she works in CAN’s Active, Multisport, Skate and Music programs.

“I want people to know that people on the autism spectrum are just like everyone else. We have goals and dreams. And we work hard to be successful and achieve them.”

We are so lucky to have individuals like Natanya supporting our participants and families. In addition to guiding our participants in their skill development, she is showcasing first-hand how individuals on the spectrum can lead the way in their community.

Read more from individuals on the spectrum:

Sebastian: Living a life I like

Sylvain: Changing my thoughts about autism

Jack speaks in front of entire school

Nate: What I want you to know about autism

Ryan: “This will all be over soon. I promise!”

 

May 25, 2018

Canucks Autism Network (CAN) is thrilled to announce that Robbie Hsieh has joined our office team in the position of Diversity and Inclusion Coordinator.

In this newly-created role at CAN, made possible through a generous multi-year grant from the North Growth Foundation, Robbie will be working alongside volunteers and staff with autism or other identified barriers to employment. This will include creating accessible recruitment processes for new applicants, creating supportive employment opportunities and developing youth and young adult programming focused on leadership and personal development.

To support these new initiatives and the evolution of CAN’s current youth and young adult programs, Robbie will be working in partnership with CAN’s new Youth Advisory Committee (stay tuned for further details on this new committee).

Robbie brings with him a highly extensive background working in CAN programs and a wealth of experience facilitating employment opportunities in the community.  Robbie first joined CAN as a volunteer in 2012. In the six-and-a-half years since, countless children, youth, young adults and families with autism have benefited from Robbie’s enthusiasm and expertise as both a program staff and volunteer.A male child and a male adult pose for a photo on an outdoor field.

Outside of CAN, Robbie previously worked for Open Door Group as Associate Program Director, connecting numerous individuals with disabilities to successful job opportunities.  Robbie is also currently a Social Innovation Fellow at RADIUS SFU, where he is working with other local change makers to address challenges in refugee and newcomer settlement and integration, health promotion, the future of education, and the future of work in Vancouver.

As CAN celebrates its 10th anniversary of creating barrier-free and accessible environments for individuals and families with autism across BC, we are thrilled to be expanding these efforts within our hiring processes.

“I am extremely excited to be joining CAN in this position,” said Robbie. “CAN’s vision is for every individual with autism to be understood, accepted and supported in all community spaces, and I am very excited to work alongside individuals with autism to advance our employment and leadership initiatives to further this vision province-wide.”

Robbie’s work will also extend outside of our walls, as he works with community partners to share CAN’s knowledge about autism in the workplace and facilitate bridging opportunities for community placements.  Robbie has already initiated conversations with a number of community groups and is eager to connect CAN’s volunteers and staff to other exciting opportunities in their local communities.

In all of these activities, Robbie looks forward to working closely with all key stakeholder groups, including CAN’s Youth Advisory Committee, other self-advocates, community partners, and supporters of accessible employment across the province.

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Apr 17, 2018

Every year, Canucks Autism Network (CAN) invites our volunteers to apply for one of four $500 scholarships to access ACT-Autism Community Training workshops.

Applicants are asked to share why they volunteer with CAN and why they want to receive funding for additional autism training.

Among the four recipients this year is Kyle Boyle. Since 2015, Kyle has volunteered in CAN’s Overnight Camps, Skate and Hockey programs, as well as at Fundraising Events, Family Events and in the office. After becoming a CAN support worker, he still continued to volunteer in our programs and events.

Here is Kyle’s volunteer testimonial:

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When I was 10 years old, I used to play hockey in my driveway and pretend I was Markus Naslund. When I went to hockey practice on Saturday mornings, I would pretend I was Trevor Linden prepping for a game. As I grew older, I realized not everyone grows up sharing these similar experiences.

This is why I began volunteering for Canucks Autism Network (CAN).

The most meaningful experiences I have had while volunteering with CAN are found in the small moments. They are in the smiles of the 18 kids stepping onto the ice every Saturday morning.

A youth hockey team and their coaches pose for a team photo.
CAN’s Vancouver Orcas at the 2018 Special Hockey Tournament in Kelowna. Kyle in top row, third from left.

They are the moments when the fastest, most skilled player on the team stops on a clean breakaway and passes to a player lagging behind so he has the chance to score his first goal.

They are in the moments in between plays when you’re learning about your participant’s favourite animal or their fascination with Zambonis.

They are in the moments when parents recognize the CAN logo on your jacket while you stand in line for coffee and tell you how much CAN has impacted their family.

It’s these small moments that make volunteering for CAN such a special and rewarding experience.

From what I can tell, it’s small moments such as these that makes CAN so meaningful for the families too. Earlier this month, I traveled with the Vancouver Orcas (one of CAN’s two adaptive hockey teams) to Kelowna, where they participated in the annual adaptive hockey tournament.

When I was a kid, my father would take me to Tim Hortons after every hockey practice for a chocolate croissant and a chocolate milk. (As you can tell, I love chocolate.) Growing up with sisters, I always looked forward to those moments when it was just me and my old man.

During the tournament in Kelowna, I had the privilege of having a long conversation with one of the hockey dads. He told me how he shares a similar tradition with his son – Timbits after every CAN practice. His son’s favourite? Chocolate.

For me, spending time with my dad was the best part of playing hockey. It is so humbling to be a part of making that experience a possibility for CAN families too.

It is amazing to see how CAN impacts families beyond the successes on the ice. Every week at CAN, I get to see the enormous impact that the proper level of support can have on a child with autism. And as a graduate student at UBC, I get to look forward to how my experience at CAN will benefit my future career in health care. Having developed the necessary skills to support children with autism, I hope that I can – at least in part – fill a gap in the healthcare system in BC. Be a missing puzzle piece, if you will.

Although I was asked to share my own personal experience volunteering, CAN has never been about the individual. As such, I contacted other members of CAN’s volunteer family and asked them what the bright green Canucks Autism Network volunteer shirt means to them.

I’d like to share a few of those comments. One individual said, “it represents giving hope for children with autism to play sports and be involved in their community.”

Another said “dedication, passion, positivity, and the burning desire to make a difference in the lives of children and families living with autism.”

For me, it’s ensuring that every kid in CAN’s hockey program gets to step on the ice and pretend they’re Bo Horvat or Brock Boeser. It’s helping facilitate the bond between a father and son that hockey can make possible.

And for all the participants in CAN programs, I hope that when they see the green volunteer t-shirt, it means that they see a friend.

Kyle at Overnight Camp in 2015 — his first experience volunteering with CAN.

Learn more about volunteering with CAN at canucksautism.ca/volunteer.

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