Jen Soucy: 12 Year Work Anniversary!
Next up in our continuing celebration of staff work anniversaries is Jen Soucy! As of May 2, 2018, she has been full-time with LiveWorkPlay for a dozen years, and for the past 5 years has been developing employer partnerships and building the Employment Task Force and Federal Employment Strategy Group. We asked Jen a few questions to help you get to know her better!
What is a favorite memory of your most recent year at LiveWorkPlay?
My favourite memory in the last year was having my family join me at the LiveWorkPlay Festive Family Feast to celebrate the holidays, and being at the Foolish Family Feast with our matching hats (see photo below). I love having my kids being a part of these events and being a part of a community where they have been welcomed with open arms, but have also learned what it means to be welcoming to others.
I also have to mention the launch of the Hire for Talent videos that featured so many of our employee-employer matches, it’s amazing to see LiveWorkPlay involved in a national employment campaign!
What is your favorite memory of the LiveWorkPlay of old?
The team was only four or five staff in my first couple of years, and we had about 30 people coming to our old day program every day, every week, every year, and we were in a constant struggle to keep things interesting for the members. There were certain days of the week with activities that had really grown stale and everyone knew it, so we all had to make the best of it and we shared a lot of laughs about that.
What we are doing now is so much better for everyone, but that doesn’t mean we don’t have some amazing memories from spending so much time together. The trips we supported back then were one of the ways we all got to be in a different setting together. and I really enjoyed seeing our members experiencing new people and places. Some of our most legendary stories are about those trips.
What are you looking forward to in the future at LiveWorkPlay?
I’m really looking forward to continuing to build new employment partnerships that lead to jobs for our members. It is very professionally satisfying for me to help with creating employee-employer matches that are long-lasting and mutually beneficial.
It is especially exciting when someone who has never had a job and has been waiting for a job for an opportunity is matched with one of our quality employer partners.
From small business owners to managers of enormous government departments or corporate divisions, I keep meeting game-changers who are incredibly committed to employment diversity, and how really understand that each employment success for a person with a disability brings us just a little closer to a truly inclusive community.
Last but not least, what to Jen’s colleagues have to say about her?
Probably the word that jumps out for me is determination. You just know she is going to get the job done, and pull together the help that is needed from others to make great things happen.
Jen is great with one or two people over a cup of coffee having an exploratory conversation, or with a room full of people with high expectations for a stellar presentation.
When you have a funny story you want to make sure she’s around so you can take a shot at getting one of those explosive laughs. I’ve seen her laugh herself into tears more than once!