CHEO WE Club focuses on ability to push forward
With only seven members, Ottawa WE Club works to normalize disabilities in an ableist world
The WE Club at the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO) in Ottawa is the only club in Canada where all seven of its members have been diagnosed with either a physical or developmental disability. However, it’s their impact on their community that’s made them truly unique.
Emily Glossup, a recreation therapist at CHEO, started the club in 2014 as part of the hospital’s lifeskills programming for patients between 12 and 18 years old. Members meet once a month from September to June to determine what will be their causes and then plan and execute their campaigns.
Over the last five years, the club has helped raise funds for local and international causes through bake sales, and has collected food and supplies for the Parkdale Food Centre. For their 2017 WE Are One campaign, to highlight how technology can help create inclusive and accessible spaces, the group filmed a video that showcased their individual talents and passions.
“It didn’t focus on disability,” said Glossup. “It focused on their abilities and who they are and what they have to give.”
That focus on ability over handicap has helped the group grow in scope year after year, and last year they undertook their biggest project yet.
Members wanted to reframe conversations around inclusion and access. They decided to replace the logos in the accessible parking spots at the hospital with a more dynamic symbol taken from Forward Movement, a disability rights organization.
To raise money for paint, stencils, rollers and other supplies they’d need, the group created and sold their own “inclusion” Rafiki Bracelets. They also wrote letters to companies and VIPs to get sponsorship and support for the project—including to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson.
The club was able to raise $600 for the project, and when it came time to repaint the logos they did it in front of a crowd that included CHEO President and CEO Alex Munter, fivetime Paralympian Todd Nicholson, and reporters from the Ottawa Sun.
“We have seven really dedicated participants,” said Glossup. “I think they’re just more willing to look at what’s needed in the community and put forward a huge effort in order to make change.”
For those who have physical and developmental disabilities, being part of a service-learning program like a WE Club can connect them with their communities and teach them self-confidence and empathy, says Isabella MacKay, 17, a member of the group since 2016. It can also help normalize disability in what is often an ableist world.
“We’re people as well, so creating opportunities through music and sports and the arts that are accessible to all, that really gives us a chance to flourish.”
MacKay had a chance to bring that message to a wider world in 2017, when she took the stage at WE Day Ottawa with fellow club member, Malcolm McLarty. Each year WE Day brings together world-renowned speakers, A-list performers and tens of thousands of students from 2,600 schools all over the province in a unique celebration of philanthropy. To attend, young people must earn their way by completing a series of local and global actions throughout the year.
Two years later, MacKay still lights up when she remembers the experience. She was able to meet idols like WE Ambassador Spencer West, and athlete and disability rights activist Rick Hansen. This year’s WE Day, which will take place on Tuesday, December 10, 2019, at the National Arts Centre, is likely to be her last one.
As MacKay prepares to graduate next year, she is grateful for her time at the CHEO WE Club. Despite the challenges of planning and attending events in spaces that weren’t always accessible, she has nothing but positive memories.
“It was amazing. I’ve made friends that I hope I never lose.”