“Take the steps, open the door, go up the elevator… because you will not regret it.”
In early 2024, Susie made a decision that would change the direction of her life: she would ask for help.
After years of emotional pain, depression and isolation, Susie had reached a point where she knew she couldn’t keep going the way she had been. She reached out to her worker and began looking for a way forward.
Taking the first step was not easy. In January 2024, Susie was recovering from foot surgery and arrived at SJLE in a walking boot during a snowstorm. Despite her fears and nerves, she showed up.
Susie’s journey with SJLE began with the Healthy Self-Esteem program, where she started learning lessons that she had not been taught before: boundaries, self-worth, and the importance of taking care of herself.
“I gained boundaries. I never knew I could say no.”
As she reflected on her life, Susie realized that becoming a mother had changed the way she saw herself:
“At the end of the Healthy Self-Esteem program, i realized that when I had my first child was when I stopped raising myself. I forgot how to raise myself. Healthy Self-Esteem taught me that it was okay to find myself now. I was the mom… but it’s time to find the woman.”
Something began to shift.
Susie now began to stand up for herself without feeling guilty. She learned that saying ‘no’ didn’t make her a bad person. Most importantly, she began to like the person she was becoming.
Once completing Healthy-Self Esteem, she moved forward with the Power Up and WESLinks program, where she continued to build the tools and confidence she needed to move forward.
Through exercises like daily gratitude photo journals, she learned to find perspective—even on the difficult days.
“Power Up is where I learned to be grateful on the bad days… Alex taught us goals,” Susie shared.
In WESLinks, facilitator Jillian helped Susie recognize that taking care of herself wasn’t selfish and that she didn’t always have to be the one in control.
“I learned it’s okay for me to let other people lead… I learned it’s okay to step back and things will still happen.”
These lessons became part of a much bigger transformation: Susie was learning to trust herself.
For Susie, the ultimate goal was always employment.
She wanted to build a stable home for her children, create a different future for her family, and prove to herself that she could do it.
After six years out of the workforce, Susie moved into CulinaryWorks and WorkLinks, where she continued preparing for employment.
Then came the moment she had been working toward.
Susie secured a job with Horizon Health working in the dish room.
For Susie, the job represented far more than a paycheque:
“Going to work was always the drive… to get out of my apartment, get a house me and my kids can call home, and to prove to myself that saying no to disability was worth it. And I can do the damn thing.”
Today, Susie carries two simple principles with her: Let Them and Be Grateful.
They reflect on how many changes have happened. Not just in her circumstances, but in the way she sees herself.
When Susie talks about SJLE, she doesn’t sugarcoat it. She knows that taking the first step can be hard, but she also knows that no one else can take that step for you.
“The Learning Exchange is a very welcoming place where you can go and get your GED, your high school diploma, self-help, whatever you need… but you can’t expect them to move mountains for you if you’re not willing to push those mountains. You need to help yourself first.”
Her advice to someone standing where she once did?
“Take the steps, take the steps, take the steps, open the door, go up the elevator, because you will not regret it.”
Today, she is working, building a home for her family, and continuing to choose herself.
She didn’t just find a path forward.
She found herself along the way.
