RICH, REWARDING AND DIVERSE

COVER STORY & SPECIAL SERIES • PART 3: CENTRAL ALBERTA

AS TOLD TO JERRY CORDEIRO OF THE HUMANS EXPERIENCE

To celebrate 2020 Social Work Week, ACSW collaborated with The Humans Experience, Photographer and journalist Jerry Cordeiro travelled throughout our province to interview and photograph nine Alberta social workers who graciously shared a glimpse into their northern and rural practice, and their thoughts of the profession. This is the final part of this special three-part series.

DAWN CHRYSTIAN, BSW, RSW – BRUCE, AB

There was no one particular event or experience that led me directly to social work. It was more a result of a number of experiences, a greater understanding of the role and how it relates to my personal values and ideal way of being in the world. Before becoming a social worker, my only foray into the “helping” professions was a period of time that I spent working in a group home for adults with intellectual disabilities. It has been a decade and a half since I worked with these individuals, yet even now their stories remain vibrant to me and continue to inform my practice. In this role, I learned a great deal about our inherent right to dignity, and the importance of cultivating a strength-based approach to working with others, although I would not understand these concepts formally until I began studying social work.

I am the director of Viking/Beaver Family & Community Support Services (VBFCSS). Our organization supports the east portion of Beaver County, and includes the communities of Holden, Bruce, Viking and Kinsella. The VBFCSS mandate is to provide preventative programs and services that help people develop resiliency, healthy relationships and connections to their community. There are no “typical days” at VBFCSS. We are extremely responsive to our community and what we do on any given day may consist of working one-on-one with clients and referring them to appropriate resources, planning or hosting an event with our VBFCSS team, or meeting with the community partners to discuss emerging concerns.

The most rewarding part of my job is connecting with individuals and supporting them in evoking their own sense of determination. We as social workers are often meeting individuals on some of the worst days of their lives. I’m often deeply impressed by the strength displayed by the individuals who I interact with, particularly in regard to their willingness and ability to act as advocates for themselves and their families despite difficult circumstances.

It might be a bit simplistic, but I hope that my work will better my communities in at least some small way. If the work I do walking alongside individuals is beneficial to them on their journey, then I feel I have accomplished something. Furthermore, I hope that the work I do encourages the further development of systems that are equitable, fair, and support the humanity of all people.

RHONDA YODER, BSW, RSW – TOFIELD, AB

I am a social worker in the Central Zone for Alberta Health Services. My role is to assist clients who are accessing health care services in acute care, homecare and long term care. Often I will support clients and families as they move through this continuum of care. I also assist people with social, psychological and/or financial matters that interfere with reaching health goals. I also provide consultation and support to other health care professionals when clients’ needs extend beyond the medical focus. In a typical day, I meet with individuals or family members to listen, advocate, inform, and problem solve with them to address identified problems and issues.

Before my social work education, I was taking evening courses in disability studies and was enjoying it very much. In 1999, I learned that my deceased father had been a victim of residential school abuse. This had a huge impact on me and as we went through the process of truth and reconciliation, I was able to access some funding to return to school. I felt compelled to take advantage of this opportunity to not only become a social worker but to study Indigenous social work. In 2004, I started my social work education at MacEwan University and later graduated with a degree from the University of Victoria with the Indigenous specialization.

Social work is a very rich, rewarding and diverse practice that encompasses many modalities. Social work includes everything from helping families gain access to government or health services, to counselling. By interacting with people in creative and exciting ways, a social worker has the ability to foster rewarding relationships with the client and peers you work with. I think I have strong connections to social work because of some of my own personal experiences. As an Aboriginal woman, I have directly felt the impact from the fallout of historical injustices. I appreciate the value of how developing a deeper understanding of Indigenous history is so vital in one’s journey towards healing.

I am breast cancer survivor and I know what it is like to feel vulnerable and to be in a place where I had to consider my own mortality. I know first-hand how important emotional and social support is during this time. I believe in hope and I think helping others find hope is so significant during difficult times. I love being a social worker.

COLLEEN PIDZARKO-ARMITAGE, SW DIP, RSW – VEGREVILLE, AB

Rural communities have primarily been where my social practice has taken place. For the past 22 years, I’ve worked for the Veg Al-Drug Society as the Program Manager and addictions counsellor. Prior to this I worked for 10 years in High Prairie and Valleyview. The people I serve are individuals or families dealing with their own or someone else’s substance use disorder and/or concurrent disorders.

When I reflect on how I came into this profession, I realize I was doing social work for many years before I actually became a social worker. I eventually made the decision to go back to school into the social work program and attend the evening program. What I was doing in my work with addictions aligned with the principles of social work, for example, acceptance, confidentiality, non-judgmental attitude. Advocating for those that do not have a voice to advocate for themselves has always been important to me as far back as I can remember. I have a soft heart, which sometimes can be challenging when working with people as it can cloud judgment at times.

One story sticks out to me of a seventeen-year-old girl referred by probation for counselling. She attended a session with me and was resistant, stating that she would rather go to jail than attend counselling. She walked out of the session angry that she had to be in my office. Probation called and told me that they were going to breach her and send her to jail. Through conversation with them, I was able to convince them that doing so would send her on a path of self-destruction. They decided to give her an opportunity to attend counselling. Several counselling appointments later, she started to open up and share about her family life, substance abuse disorder and street life. She attended counselling for several months, making some big changes. When she graduated from high school, she applied and was accepted to a college in Calgary, later entering the social work program and eventually graduating with her degree in social work. She kept in contact over the years and through various stages of her life, and would say that because I believed in and advocated for her, it was a big reason why she is who she is today.

Outcomes like these are what drive me in the work I do. People need someone to believe in them and help them to believe in themselves. That to me is a big part of social work.

JERRY CORDEIRO: THE HUMANS EXPERIENCE

“Build relationships first.”

That’s the guiding principle behind Jerry Cordeiro’s empathy filled photography as the founder of The Humans Experience, which uses photos and social media to share the stories of Edmonton’s marginalized citizens – a passion project with roots in childhood.

“I was a street kid,” Cordeiro recalls. “I came home when the streetlights came on.” As the child of an immigrant mother, Cordeiro found himself advocating for her from an early age. He was the voice for his mother at the bank and at service agencies. Fortunately, he found allies in social workers.

“Social workers were mentors of mine when I was a child. They kept my nose out of trouble,” Cordeiro explains. He remembers that having social workers around was important in helping his family find the services they needed, and in relieving some of his loneliness.

This positive influence aligned with Cordeiro’s comfort on the streets to guide him into a career as a child and youth worker. “It taught me patience,” he says of his decade working with adults with disabilities.

In 2014, Cordeiro was ready for a change. He picked up a camera, and “instead of taking pictures of barns or flowers”, he headed where he was most at home – the inner city streets of his childhood.

“I decided to take photos of the people I’d always stopped to talk to,” he says. Inspired by Humans of New York, which features photos and essays of the people on New York streets, Cordeiro’s Facebook page showcasing his street photography evolved into The Humans Experience – and a full-time passion and vocation.

“I listen and relate. That’s before I bring out the camera,” Cordeiro says.

He brings that compassion to all his story-telling and photography, including his work depicting the social workers featured in ACSW’s 2020 Social Work Week series.