Community Now! Magazine is about the people, businesses and organizations in the community making an impact!
The Outcome of Community Now! Is collaboration, connections and learning across industry, people and generations. #TogetherWeAreStronger
#ItTakesACommunity
Thank you to ALL of our contributors, supporters, sponsors, readers & advertisers.
This issue contains content from: Blaise Hunter, Krista Malden, Jade Alberts, Jeff Sturgeon, Jay Bernard Sturgeon #TogetherWeAreStronger#ItTakesACommunity.
In the spirit of respect and truth, we acknowledge the traditional territories of the people of the Treaty 7 region in Southern Alberta, which includes the Blackfoot Confederacy (comprising the Siksika, Piikani, and Kainai First Nations), as well as the Tsuut’inaFirstNation,andtheStoney Nakoda (including the Chiniki, Bearspaw, and Wesley First Nations). The city of Calgary is also home to Metis Nation of Alberta, Region III.
Copyright 2024 ZX Media Corporation, Calgary Alberta Canada Community Now! Magazine. Volume 7 Issue 3 November 2024 All rights reserved. This magazine or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher, writer, artist, or photographer.
MENTAL HEALTH TIP of the MONTH: with
Jeff Sturgeon
Express Your Needs for Better Mental Health
Communicatingyour needsisan essential skill for safeguarding your mental health. When needs go unspoken, they can create feelingsoffrustration,resentment,orevenlead to anxiety and depression. By learning to express your needs clearly, you can reduce stress, enhance your relationships, and foster a greater sense of well-being. If unsure how to best express your needs, consider the following tips:
1. Identify Your Needs: Before you can communicate effectively, it’s important to firstunderstandwhatyoutrulyneed.This might be emotional support, time alone, help with responsibilities, or understanding from others. Reflect on your emotions and recognize what specificactionsorchangeswouldimprove your mental health.
2. Use "I" Statements: When expressing your needs, focus on your feelings and experiences. Statements like “I feel overwhelmed and need some help” emphasize your perspective without blaming others. This reduces defensiveness and encourages more constructive dialogue.
3. Be Assertive, Not Aggressive: Being assertive means stating your needs clearly and confidently without being confrontational. It's important to express what you need while also respecting the other person’s perspective. Assertive communication helps you stay calm and clear, improving the chance of getting your needs met without conflict.
4. SetBoundaries: Boundaries are vital for protecting your mental health. Whether it's saying "no" to extra work or requesting alone time to recharge, clearly defined boundaries help you prevent burnout. Communicate these boundaries respectfully but firmly, letting others know your limits.
5. Stay Honest and Vulnerable: Honest communication fosters trust and understanding. It’s okay to admit when you're struggling or feeling vulnerable. Sharing openly allows others to better understand what you're going through, encouraging empathy and support. Vulnerability can also deepen relationships by promoting open dialogue.
6. ChoosetheRightTimeandSetting:
Timing is crucial when expressing your needs. Avoid having difficult conversations during high-stress moments. Instead, choose a time when both parties are calm and more receptive. This increases the likelihood of your needs being heard and understood.
7. Be Specific and Practical: Vague requests may not get you the support you need. Instead of saying, "I need help," try, "I need help with picking up the kids this week because I’m feeling overwhelmed." The more specific and practicalyouare,theeasieritwillbefor others to understand and respond to your request.
8. Practice Active Listening: Communication is a two-way street. When expressing your needs, also be open to listening to the other person’s perspective. This helps foster mutual understanding and respect, which is essential for healthy relationships.
9. RehearseDifficultConversations: If you find it hard to express your needs, practice beforehand. Rehearse what you want to say, either by writing it down or discussing it with a trusted friend. This can help boost your confidence and clarity when the time comes to have the conversation.
10. Acknowledge and Reinforce Positive Responses: When someone responds positively to your needs, acknowledge and appreciate it. Gratitude reinforces supportive behavior and builds stronger relationships, making it easier to continue expressing your needs in the future.
Learning to express your needs effectively is empowering and plays a crucial role in maintaining good mental health. By communicating openly, setting boundaries, and staying honest, you create a healthier emotional environment for yourself and your relationships.
If you find it difficult to express your needs or feel unsure about where to start, consider reaching out to a therapist. The team at Your Counselling can help you navigate these conversations, develop assertiveness skills, and provide you with personalized strategies for maintaining your emotional well-being.
“If everyone is moving forward together, then success takes care of itself.”
- Henry Ford
The Superpower Project
Falling & Getting Back Up Again: The Heart’s Resilience
“If the fire in your heart is strong enough, it will burn away any obstacles that come your way.”
― Suzy Kassem
Life has a way of knocking us down sometimes repeatedly, and sometimes harder than we think we can bear. This past year, for many of us, has been a season of struggle. Family crises, health concerns, financial pressures, work conflicts, breakups, trauma, and betrayal have been common threads. And the more we’re hit, the harder it feels to find our footing again. I won’t sugarcoat it this year has been one of themostchallengingformesincethepandemic.There have been countless times when I’ve thought, "How canIgetthroughthiswhenIhaven’tevenhealedfrom the last blow?" Every month feels like another hurdle, and sometimes it feels like I’ve hit the ground and just want to stay there. Yet, in the depth of my struggle, I’ve discovered something profound: the heart has an uncanny ability to rise.
The Superpower Project is about highlighting various challenges or “kryptonites” facing people and helping us neutralize their effect on us. A deadly kyrptonite facing us these days is Warrior Weariness. The fatigue of the relentless fighter is real. We fight battle after battle, enduring wave after wave of struggles, and it’s only natural to feel pummeled, worn down, and ready to surrender. The exhaustion from constantly having to stand back up can leave us questioning if we have anything left to give. But our greatest superpower, the one that kills the kryptonites of hopelessness and exhaustion, is our heart. The heart has an unmatched resilience the will to love, to hope, and to rise, even when every part of us wants to give in. It’s the heart that keeps us movingforward,remindinguswhywefightin the first place.
Despite the temptation to stay down, there’s always something sometimes just a flicker that propels us to stand up again. Maybe it’s hope, maybe it’s resilience, or maybe it’s that deeply rooted belief that life can and will get better. Wherever it comes from, it’s within all of us. And it’s what keeps us moving, even when standing up feels like the hardest thing in the world.
So how do we keep getting back up? How do we find the strength to rise when the world keeps pushing us down? Here are a few lessons I’ve learned from my own battles with falling and rising, again and again.
1.EmbracetheFallasPartoftheJourney
It might seem counterintuitive, but the first step in rising again is embracing the fact that we’ve fallen. Too often, we’re made to feel
ashamed of our struggles, as if we must be unbreakable pillars of strength. But life isn't aboutavoidingfalls;it’saboutnavigatingthem. In fact, the fall itself is part of our growth. Admitting that we’re struggling is difficult I know it firsthand. My family, especially my husband, has been going through something significant, and we’ve had to rally like never before. But I’m learning that it’s okay to fall; it’s safe to fall. We always land on our feet.
Falling isn’t failing.
Like trees in a storm, we bend and break but grow stronger at the roots. Each setback can feel like failure, but it's actually evidence of resilience. Every fall carries a lesson, whether it’s discovering a strength we didn’t know we had, learning to adapt, or prioritizing self-care. In our darkest moments, there is wisdom waiting. When we embrace the fall as part of our journey, it loses its power to defeat us and instead becomes a stepping stone toward something greater.
2.FindMeaningintheStruggle
When life’s challenges feel overwhelming, it’s easy to lose sight of the meaning behind them. Why is this happening? What’s the point of all thispain?Thesearenaturalquestions,andthey often arise from our desire to make sense of suffering. The truth is, not every hardship comes with an immediate answer, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t meaning to be found.
Viktor Frankl, a Holocaust survivor, wrote that “When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves.” Life often hands us situations we can’t control, but what we can control is how we respond. Finding meaning in our struggle helps us regain a sense of agency.
For me, that meaning has come in the form of vulnerability and connection. By sharing my
story my hurdles, my fears, my heartache - I’ve been able to connect with others who are going through similar battles. There’s something powerful about being able to say, “Iseeyou.Iunderstandyou.I’vebeenthere too.” This act of revealing the struggle not only lightens the emotional load but also helps restore hope that the pain is not in vain. It gives us the courage to believe that getting back up matters—not just for ourselves but for those we inspire in the process.
3.LeanIntotheStrengthofCommunity
We live in a world that often glorifies independence, but the truth is, none of us are meant to do this alone. When we fall, it can feel isolating, as if no one could possibly understand the depth of our pain. But that’s rarely the case. Often, the very people around us are fighting their own battles, and together, we can find strength we didn’t know we had. Support comes in different forms. Sometimes, it’s a friend who listens without judgment, a family member who offers a kind word, or a partner who reassuresyoubysittinginthemudwithyou. These people remind us that it’s okay to fall and that we don’t have to get up by ourselves. Reaching out for help is not a sign of weakness—it’s a reflection of our willingness to rise.
Imagine yourself as a puzzle piece. Alone, you may feel incomplete, but when connected to others, you help form a larger, more meaningful picture. Community is the key—a powerful, unseen force that gives us strength when we can't stand alone. True strength comes from vulnerability, allowing ourselvestoleanonothers,andtrustingthat together, we create something greater than we ever could alone.
RestoringHopeintheActofRising
When life knocks us down, it can feel like we’re tootiredtostand.Wemightquestionwhetherit’s even worth trying again. But every time we rise, we are telling ourselves and the world that we believe in a better tomorrow. There will always be days when staying down seems easier. But something within the human spirit the heart’s resilience—will push you forward. We are not defined by our falls, but by the fire in our hearts to rise, again and again. And as we get back up, we remind others that they can too. So, if you find yourself on the ground, take a deep breath. Rememberthatthefallispartofthejourney.And when you’re ready, become the fire of relentless resiliency. The flames of hope will join you on the frontlines of the fight. For more information visit www.blaisehunter.com.
" True grit is staring down the rubble of your own heart, daring it to beat louder than the fall. It’s rising, it’s roaring, it’s owning every bruise as a badge of the heart’s unbreakable spirit. Fall seven times, rise eight – that’s the power of resilience."
– Blaise Hunter
I love founding stories and how you came together. Please share how you met and foundedLEWK?
LEWK's founding story began over a casual coffee chatbetweenmyco-founder,Sheena,andme.After transitioning from corporate consulting to running her own agency supporting creative entrepreneurs, Sheena identified a significant challenge in the fashion retail space making the online shopping experience more personal and efficient. She saw firsthandhowoverwhelmingitwasforwomentosift through thousands of products, struggling to find items that suited their style and body type. Both inspired by this pain point, we set out to solve it with technology and the commercialization of AI, and from that vision, LEWK was born.
Telling It Like It Is, is brought to you by Jade Alberts
Has the problem you're solving evolved since starting LEWK? The problem we’re solving has evolved since we started LEWK, particularly on the retailer side. Initially, we focused on helping consumersquicklyfindtherightoutfits,butwe soon uncovered a deeper issue: outdated search and recommendation systems are failing both retailers and consumers. These systems don’t cater to modern shoppers’ short attention spans, leading to missed opportunities and wasted marketing spend. Retailersinvestheavilyindrivingtraffictotheir websites, but in the crowded fashion retail space, many struggle to deliver personalized experiences that connect the right products to the right customers at the right time. LEWK addresses this by acting as a virtual stylist that transforms the online shopping experience for both retailers and consumers. We ask shoppers a few simple questions and, using AI, curate personalized outfit options from hundreds of retailers in just 15 seconds. By combining AI, technology, and retail expertise, we simplify the shopping journey, helping customers find exactly what they need while boosting retailers' traffic and optimizing their marketing spend.
Please share how LEWK will help transform the fashion industry. We’re incredibly excited about the future of online shopping. At LEWK, we see a world
where personalized, seamless shopping experiences are the norm, not the exception. As technology continues to evolve, we’re committed to staying at the forefront of innovation, helping both retailers and consumers by creating a shopping experience that’s faster, more intuitive, and deeply tailored to individual preferences.
If you had one piece of advice for a startuporentrepreneur,whatwouldthat be?
Sheena and I always find this question challenging because we’ve learned so much about being entrepreneurs over the past few years, and we know there’s still much more to learn.Oneofourmostvaluablerecentlessons is the importance of finding quality mentors and coaches. As startup founders, we’re constantlyreceivingadvicefromalldirections. It’s crucial to sift through that advice and determine what aligns with our vision and what doesn’t. Trusting our instincts is a powerful tool, but it’s equally important to have a few key people we respect to provide guidance and support. Ultimately, though, the responsibility for making decisions rests with us so we trust ourselves to make the right calls for our business.
BUSINESSES in the COMMUNITY
Making an impact
Congratulations to MaxGreen for winning the Social Entrepreneurship Award by the Calgary Chambers of Commerce.
What started as a simple idea of giving back $10 for every window and door replaced to local charities, grew into over $300,000 raised and 15,000 trees planted.
“We hope to continue to show that being a Triple Bottom Line Business is not just good for people and the planet but can also be a sustainable model for growth.” – MaxGreen
The Calgary Chamber recognizes that small businesses are the “heartbeat” of the economy. The Calgary Small Business Awards Gala, presented by Rogers Business, is their chance to highlight the hard work, dedication and economic contributions small businesses are making. The awards Gala is held during the Calgary Chambers Small Business week, a week filled with opportunities to learn, network and celebrate all the businesses in our community.
Join AARC at the Youth Resource Fair on November 21st!
We’re excited to invite families, organizations, and community memberstotheYouthResourceFair at AARC! This free event is an opportunity to explore invaluable resources for youth facing mental health and addiction challenges. With so many young lives at stake, raising awareness has never been so important.
Come learn, connect, and find support that can make a difference. Let’s come together to create hope andchangeforouryouth.Wewould love to welcome you!
The main goal of the Empower2Recover Foundation in hosting events across Canada is to create spaces that foster hope, connection, and empowerment for individuals facing trauma, addiction and mental health challenges.ByorganizingeventsliketheBattle for Recovery, the foundation aims to bring people together in supportive environments, celebrate personal victories of recovery, and demonstrate that recovery is possible in all ways. Through these gatherings, Empower2Recover seeks to reduce stigma, promote mental wellness, and inspire communities to rally around recovery and resilience.
Jay Barnard, also known as Chef Recovery, started the Empower2Recover Foundation as a way to give back and support those struggling with Trauma, addiction and mental health challenges. With over 16 years of personal recovery experience, he wanted to create a space where people could find hope and be inspired by others who’ve faced similar battles. Through events like the Battle for Recovery, he aims to connect people, provide encouragement, and show that recovery is possible. It’s his way of combining his passion forcookingandmotivationalspeakingtocreate meaningful experiences that empower and uplift others on their own journeys to recovery.
Organizations Collaborating With Community to make an IMPACT
The word, “recovery” means much more than simply overcoming addiction; it represents a journey of transformation, resilience, and self-discovery. For Jay, recovery is about reclaiming one’s life, finding purpose, and continuously working toward personal growth. It’s also about connection—building supportive communities, sharing stories, and inspiring others to believe in their own potential to heal and thrive. Through his work with Empower2Recover, Jay defines recovery as a path that leads to empowerment and the chance to help others on their journeys to wellness and fulfillment.
“Storytelling is a way to encourage others to see hope in their own stories and empower their spirit and communities to offer support and understanding. Through storytelling, Empower2Recover builds a culture of compassion, resilience, and solidarity across Canada.” – Jay Barnard
For Jay Barnard and the Empower2Recover Foundation, connecting through storytelling is essential because it’s a powerful way to inspire, educate, and build empathy. Storytelling allows Jay and others in recovery to share their personal journeys the struggles, victories, and lessons learned— which can help break down stigma around addiction and mental health. By openly discussing their experiences, they create a sense of connection and show that recovery is possible, no matter how difficult the journey may seem.
Storytelling creates a platform where people feel seen and heard, encouraging those in recovery to share their own experiences and seek help without shame. Additionally, these shared stories offer solutions like communitydriven support networks, access to resources, and partnerships with organizations that can provide tangible help. The foundation aims to create a ripple effect where storytelling not only inspires individual healing but also prompts community-based initiatives, policy advocacy, and stronger support systems for those in need.
The community in Canada can get involved with the Empower2Recover Foundationinseveralmeaningfulways:
1.Attend Events: Community members can attend Battle for Recovery events and other gatherings hosted by Empower2Recover, showing support for those on their recovery journeys and helping create a welcoming, stigma-free environment.
2.Volunteer: People can volunteer their time and skills to help organize and run events, from set-up and logistics to guest support. Volunteers play a vital role in making each event successful and impactful.
3.Partner or Sponsor: Local businesses and organizations can partner with or sponsor the foundation’s events, providing financial support, resources, or in-kind contributions. Community partnerships help cover event costs and increase the foundation’s outreach.
4.Spread Awareness: Individuals can raise awareness by sharing information about Empower2Recover on social media, talking to friends and family about recovery, and breaking down stigmas around addiction and mental health.
5.Donate: Those who want to support the foundation financially can make donations that directly contribute to organizing events, outreach programs, and other recoveryfocused initiatives.
By getting involved, Canadians help strengthen a nationwide community of support, empowerment, and hope for those recovering from addiction and mental health struggles.
IN the COMMUNITY!
Exploring Community
Exploring the community through events allows us to learn. There are so many remarkable communitieswithintheoverallcommunity.Themorewecansupporteachotherandlearnabout eachother the stronger we all become.
Eventsareagreatwaytosupport,learn,connectandshare.Weencourageeveryonetoexplore various events throughout the community!
SOBERFUN! To some that is an impossible thought, to others it is unknown, and within society it is still questioned! WHY?
People today are craving opportunities to have fun without alcohol…but there are very few opportunities offered! UntilNOW!
OnOctober26,2024,JaymeMinorheld Soberween at Ranchman’s…creating spaceforallagestohaveasoberparty!
“It’s absolutely so important to have sober events for all ages. It’s a great way for children to learn and see their parents have fun without alcohol. It creates a safe environment where no one is judged for not drinking and we are showing people how to have fun the most real and raw way possible.” – Soberween Attendee
“ To have Ranchman’s open their doors and welcome. The Sober crowd is absolutely amazing. Most nightclubs and bars are about making money and the only way to do that is by serving booze. Everyone at the event had so much fun and we literally proved it to be a pure success. This is going to change the way Calgary parties.”
Being raised in a generation that was taught to drink we must now change the narrative and provide opportunities for sober fun and teach the generations to come that alcohol is NOT required at every party, or event.
If you take a drive through your neighbourhood…count how many liquor stores there are… within 15 minutes of my house I counted 11 liquor stores! There are more liquor stores then coffee shops…and that doesn’t include the pubs and restaurants that serve alcohol within the 15minute radius. Yet when I look for sober events or places it is very hard to find an event or activity that does NOT include alcohol, (even Chuckee Cheese serves alcohol).
Jayme Minor is creating opportunities for people of all ages to have fun in a sober environmentandpromotinghealthylivingon a daily basis.
If you want to host a sober event contact Jayme! Follow Jayme! And lets all dive into sober fun, with everyone in our lives! https://www.jaymeminor.com/
“ Jayme can hold a crowd and also deliver an impactful message to our youth and even adult adults at the same time.”
– Soberween Attendee
“Choosing sobriety is a courageous decision that empowers you to take control of your life and reclaim your happiness and well-being. Remember, you are not alone on this journey - there is a wealth of support and resources waitingtohelpyoueverystepoftheway. Embrace the strength within you and choose the path of sobriety. You deserve a life filled with clarity, joy, and fulfillment.” Jayme Minor
TAKE the DAY to go on a WELLNESS
December 4, 2024
Mental Health Summit: networking, resources, work with experts in their field in a World Café setting to build your road map to wellness! Get your tickets here
