Heather is the lucky mom of two young boys, Jakob, and Kyle. Kyle is a unique and loving 10-year-old boy with Autism. Once Kyle received his diagnosis, he and his mom vowed to do what they could to make the process of receiving a diagnosis and having proper access to mental health resources easier for those families that followed them. Kyle is kind and loving and brilliant and he always wants to help others. While on their journey, they realized the excessive need to help educate, advocate and help to make a difference for those families, especially in the North, where resources are not in abundance. Kyle and Heather started selling homemade fire starters in their community to raise money for BC & Alberta Guide Dogs after Kyle was gifted with an Autism service dog. They had a goal to raise $500 and in a few short months, they ended up donating $6700! Kyle was so driven by this experience that he asked to keep going with his fundraising and has raised funds for many more worthy causes.
Heather has over 25 years of administrative experience as well as experience in the Northern Health Authority in the Child and Youth Health Program and the Mental Health and Substance Use program. Heather has used her exposure both in her career experience and lived experience as a parent of a child with diverse abilities, to advocate, educate and drive awareness to the accessibility and availability of resources for individuals with diverse abilities.
