TESTIMONY
Jennifer Warwick
Hi everyone,
I’m so grateful that I had the opportunity, in 2020, to become a co-founder of the PHSS Pen Pal Program at Western! I have always been passionate about disability advocacy but I didn’t know what to do about it. Just as I felt like I knew I wanted to work with people with disabilities and advocate for disability rights, the pandemic and social distancing came into full effect in Canada. I felt stuck and alone.
Through online school at Western, I applied to the Community Engaged Learning opportunity and I somehow got PHSS. My first choice! This project has been the most rewarding journey in my academic experience. I got to work with an amazing team at Western and branch out to meet more people through PHSS in the London community! I’m thankful to the PHSS participants and support team, my student team and Prof. Barr and her teaching team for giving us this opportunity!
I encourage everyone reading this to apply to the Pen Pal Program! It’s an incredibly rewarding experience!
Conner Quinton
Hello,
I absolutely loved this experience, I made an amazing connection with my virtual pen pal and I really enjoyed writing these fun letters to de-stress after school. Moreover, during the isolation that I experienced during COVID-19, I was beyond grateful to have had this awesome opportunity to communicate with and get to know such an interesting and friendly pen pal. Furthermore, I have been blessed with the opportunity to contribute to the formation of this virtual Pen Pal Program, and I can’t wait to see how this program will flourish in the future! I strongly recommend to anyone who wants to create a life-long connection to participate in this program!
Abbey Anthony
I knew this would be an exciting experience for my pen-pal, but I had no idea how fun it would be for me too! I've gotten to have great conversations and opened my mind in ways I never would have before if it weren't for this program"
Clare Finlay
This program was an amazing and rewarding opportunity that helped me to connect to community members. Sending and receiving letters from my pen pal was so fun. This experience was very fulfilling and I encourage others to get involved!