Amanda was born in Estevan, Saskatchewan, and moved around throughout childhood. While in grade 11, Amanda was kicked out of her mom鈥檚 house and moved in with her boyfriend. Despite this obstacle, Amanda put in the hard work and graduated high school on her own.
She currently resides in Regina with her son, who has epilepsy and other health problems. In 2001, she was first diagnosed with a learning disability. Since then, she has been diagnosed with Depression, Social Anxiety, Generalized Anxiety and Borderline Personality Disorder.
Amanda has struggled with school subjects, social situations, overwhelming emotions, and lack of motivation because of her disabilities.
After finding out about her son鈥檚 intellectual disability, Amanda began searching for support. She learned about Neil Squire from and joined our Working Together program last year looking for assistance in navigating the labour market and updating her employment documents.
Amanda started the process by updating her resume and creating a cover letter that she could tailor to jobs in her field of interest. In the past, Amanda has worked with kids in a daycare, for an insurance broker, and other customer service jobs.
Amanda was motivated to be successful and put in the effort to learn as much as she could. She did interview preparation and learned about wellness tips that she could utilize. From the knowledge she gained, Amanda says learning about her rights as an employee will make the biggest difference in her life and future work.
Amanda saw a need in the community that she wanted to try to fill. Her experiences with her son awakened a passion in her to help other families navigate through the different programs and resources available to them.
Because Amanda didn鈥檛 have work experience or education in her field of interest, her Job Developer informed her about the Disability Support Worker Certificate program. She decided to take action and apply for it.
Amanda is excited to attend Saskatchewan Polytechnic in the fall to complete her Disability Support Worker Certificate.
In addition, Amanda was able to secure a part-time position at a youth organization in Regina. Amanda has several duties, some of which include promoting diversity and inclusivity, ensuring the children in their care are physically and emotionally secure, and implementing developmentally appropriate activities and experiences.
Amanda says she is grateful for the staff at Neil Squire, as she would not be where she is today without their support and help.