At Sol Express, I learned to help amplify voices
by listening to them and getting to know them.
2024 has been a very resourceful and inspirational year in my role (as a disability advocate and member of the L’Arche Canada Communications team). The reason why I am committed to this work is because I want people who don’t have disabilities to understand that people with disabilities would like to be just exactly like them, living their lives authentically, just like me.
Everything to do with disabilities is important because everyone matters, everyone deserves to belong.
We don’t want to label people with disabilities. We can help them but not put them down. It’s hurtful. Or think they are always happy. Everyone has different expressions of their emotions. When we put labels on people with disabilities, we are going to shut them down.
I’ve been part of Sol Express from the very beginning. I was one of the founding members. I learned to help amplify voices by listening to them and getting to know them. (At Sol Express) we learn to listen and collaborate together. We also listened to the voices of (institutional) survivors for the preparation for Birds Make Me Think About Freedom. I realized that it could have been me.
I am the first ever person with a disability to be a guest editor with the UN News. I interviewed some ambassadors and delegates of the Conference (COSP 17, the Conference of States Parties to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. L’Arche international took part.). It was really fun getting to know them. It was a great experience to be interviewing them about what their role is at the United Nations. It was very educational to be interviewing them about disability employment and the other themes of the Conference. It was very inspirational to get to know them.
The reason why I went to Croatia (with Lori Vannholt, the National Vice Executive Director of L’Arche Canada) was to help youth leaders and change-makers from different countries to create a mock webinar to help leaders with disabilities make change in their countries. We had a training to help them prepare to do their live webinars in the near future. Where they can do the work. Where they can contribute. My message to youth leaders is, “Believe in yourself don’t let anyone tell you different. And always stand out.”
In October 2024, L’Arche Canada’s Nick Herd, Lori Vaanholt, and Warren Pot joined 46 participants at Brock University’s “Research Camp.” The three-day event brought together individuals with intellectual disabilities, academic researchers, support professionals, and students in the disability studies program to explore inclusive and participatory research methods.
I went to Winnipeg this year for the MDC. (Working with Cheryl Zinyk, a co-founder of Sol Express in support of the work of Dr. Madeline Burghardt, a former L’Arche Toronto assistant, in the project of documenting artifacts from Manitoba Developmental Centre and the stories of survivors.) They are closing down the large, huge institution, and I was there to listen, as one of the listeners listening to the Survivor’s stories. I saw a film called These Four Walls, and it was a very inspirational film. They are coming to a close of this project, and we are hoping for a better future.
The Impact of Sol Express
Sol Express has been a huge impact on my life. I have been part of the program for the last 17 years. Over those years, I have been given many opportunities. I had my art commissioned by the Daniels Corporation to have my painting in one of their condos. We had our artwork up in the AGO for the disability arts showcase. Sol Express helped me with the work of illustrating a children’s book, about the gifts of a kid who has Down Syndrome finding his voice in the world.
In Sol Express, we got to know other artists who have come to share their experiences and to help us grow with things like voice work, movement, emotions, and being in control of our bodies. We’ve been in the Toronto Fringe Festival a number of times, performing our own work. It has also personally helped me to grow in so many ways, with my performing, as an artist, but also as a person. I’ve grown as a self-advocate and now not just for me but advocating for people with disabilities and making space for others to also be heard by amplifying their voices.
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