Adopt4Life Important Parent Liaison Team Update
As Adopt4Life’s Executive Director, I have the pleasure and privilege to work with a team of deeply talented individuals who are all passionately invested in our community, supporting parents and families on their adoption journeys. Today I have several important organizational updates to share with everyone regarding our Parent Liaison team.
First, Kimberly Sanzo has accepted another position outside of Adopt4Life and will be leaving effective November 3rd. We’re saddened to see Kimberly leave, as during her tenure as our Provincial Parent Liaison she has been an amazing contributor to the launch of the Parent2Parent Support Network, the development of our social communities, and has engaged 1:1 with many community members to provide much-needed peer support. We’re excited to see her take the next step in her career path. We wish Kimberly all the best in the future, and look forward to her remaining active in our adoption community.
We have built a strong, vibrant Parent Liaison team across Ontario, and as a result I’m also very excited to share that Kathryn Connors and Joy Wicks-Nicholls are both taking on Team Lead/Provincial Parent Liaison roles. They will partner to cover the expanding regions, continue to grow and develop our Parent Liaisons, and support the core activities of the Parent2Parent Support Network. Kathryn and Joy are both exceptionally qualified to take on these new opportunities with complementary skill sets that will expand the support and leadership for our Regional Parent Liaisons:
• Joy is also an adoptive parent of three children. For over a decade, Joy has practiced as an Occupational Therapist in adolescent mental health, and now provides community-based occupational therapy services to individuals experiencing the effects of injury. Joy has particular interests in attachment, trauma, connected parenting, prenatal substance exposure, transracial and First Nations adoption, and sibling adoption.
• Kathryn is an adoptive mom to three children. Kathryn holds a Master’s Degree in Critical Disability Studies as well as a Bachelor of Social Work. Her previous work experience includes supporting families of children with special needs and providing crisis intervention to young adults with developmental disabilities. She has extensive lived and professional experience with openness, foster-to-adopt processes, crisis prevention intervention (CPI), and children’s mental health.
You’ll find their full bio’s on Adopt4Life’s website.
Congratulations to Kathryn and Joy on their newly expanded leadership roles in the P2P Parent Liaison team, and our best wishes to Kimberly. Our team is executing a thorough transition plan that minimizes any disruption in support services to our community members, who will increasingly see more of Kathryn and Joy in our social communities and other engagements. As always, if you’re a parent needing support, please reach out to our P2P team for assistance. We’re always #strongertogether.
Warmly,
Julie Despaties
Executive Director
Adopt4Life