What is your name?
Carol Kipps-Sewell.
What is your position with the Y?
Employment Facilitator.
What Y Centre/program do you work with?
YConnects, Career Development Services, Pandosy Street.
What do you always find yourself saying?
Since covid: “It’s a marathon, not a sprint”.
Where is your favourite place to “dine”/order takeout in the Okanagan?
I absolutely LOVE food so this is a really tough question for me to answer! I love the seitan “chicken” at Naked Café AND the patio at Smack Dab with its amazing lake view. It is a lovely location to relax and enjoy some appies!
What is your favourite activity while social distancing in the Okanagan?
Because I’m newer to the Okanagan, my husband and I love to explore a variety of communities close to us like Peachland and Naramata. Wherever we visit, I’m always researching local eateries that we can try.
Who inspires you (within your Y family or elsewhere)?
The participants we serve. They are amazing human beings and entrust us with their hopes and aspirations. I feel so honored to be a part of their journey. Their openness, positivity, and resilience are a constant inspiration.
What are 3 things on your bucket list?
- Eating at a restaurant owned by Chef Ramsey.
- Travelling back to London, England to visit family.
- Visiting the French Riviera in the summertime.
Tell us about a defining moment in your life.
Graduating from college in my 30s. I didn’t have a positive educational experience from elementary to high school, so “going back to school” later on in life was very scary for me. When I graduated, I felt I had really challenged my anxiety/fears and achieved something very significant for myself. I reflect on this experience when I am in challenging circumstances to remind myself of my capacities.
What has been your favourite day of your life, up to this point?
A very special day happened for me last summer when my husband and I were married. It was a wonderful day from beginning to end. We had our children there with us for our ceremony at beautiful Bertram Park.
How does your team/facility/program make a difference every day?
I love what our team and program strives to do - guide and support young adults to obtain meaningful employment/careers. Everyday participants we serve entrust us with their dreams, aspirations and also with the challenges they are experiencing. We assist them with connecting to their inherent worth and value and to see possibilities for themselves that they may not see. Overall, we help participants to live the life they really want to live.
What would you like to say to your fellow staff/volunteer team?
I love being a part of this team! You are all caring, compassionate, dedicated, and truly aspire to make a positive difference in the lives of those we serve. I feel so connected when we share the positive growth that participants experience and acknowledge the resilience they have built to overcome challenges in their life.
How has your role changed during COVID?
I have grown so much in the area of learning how to deliver our services virtually rather than in person. It became even more important than ever to communicate to participants that we care, we are there for them due to the extra stress being put on them by covid. Usually we can communicate this in person with our actions, our tone, eye contact, body language etc. But learning to communicate our care and concern virtually was a huge learning curve for me. I have learned that consistently saying the words “we care about how you are doing, please tell me how you are doing, what can we do to help you right now” on zoom, through text, on a phone call or in an email is especially crucial at this time.
What does community mean to you?
Community to me means not just recognizing but also accepting, respecting our individual uniqueness and being there for each other in times of need. Also celebrating each other’s individual growth, accomplishments and achievements is included in my idea of community.
What is your favourite part of your job?
I love the flexibility I have in my role to mold my support to the needs of participants. It allows me to be creative in how I deliver workshops. I love that in my role there isn’t such a thing as “one size fits all”. This allows me to take the time to understand the individuality of each participant and what would benefit them most.
What Y team member would you like to give a shout-out to and why?
I would like to give a shout out to two team members - Jan and Charlene. They have much knowledge and wisdom in the area of career development. What I love is that their doors are ALWAYS open and they are always so generous with sharing their knowledge and being supportive to us newer team members. I aspire to be as knowledgeable and supportive as them one day!