Welcome Lisa and Bailey
New Coaches: Lisa and Bailey, welcome to the team!
On January 6th, 2020, Coach Lisa, Occupational Therapist, and Coach Bailey, Program Support Coach, joined the Qi Creative team. They bring with them diverse experiences and interests, as well as strengths and talents that make them truly awesome people. We are excited for the journey ahead and the awesome that they will bring to the practice and the with amazing children, families and schools that we serve.
Coach Lisa received her Bachelor of Arts in Communications and Culture at the University of Calgary and her Master of Science in Occupational Therapy at the University of Alberta. Her passion for working with children has always been at the forefront of her professional experiences and aspirations. Lisa values the power of play-based therapy and a collaborative team approach with families, teachers, and support systems. She loves the strength of open communication, and seeks to foster meaningful independence and love of life for all involved. Lisa truly believes all growth, no matter how small, is worth celebrating. Lisa has been fortunate to have traveled to over 25 countries including opportunities such as field research deep in the jungle of Honduras, bungee jumping in Slovenia, a work exchange at a horse rescue in rural Turkey, a university exchange in South Korea, and caring for 40 dogs at a safe house in Bali. Her most recent adventure has been to Denmark, and her next one is unknown! Lisa adopted a rescue cat named Moose in 2019 and is proudly obsessed with him. She has accepted her crazy cat lady status. Originally hailing from Calgary, Lisa enjoys hiking and spending time in the mountains when possible. Lisa has also recently discovered bouldering and is loving the mental and physical challenges it brings. Some of Lisa’s other favourite things include venturing through escape rooms, expanding her craft beer knowledge, creatively cooking without recipes, spending meaningful time with loved ones, and doing the silliest dances possible.
“It has officially been a month since beginning my journey at Qi Creative – and wow, what a month! I have difficulties wrapping my head around how I only started a month ago, yet how it also feels as if I’ve been within the Qi Creative family for so much longer. There is a genuine culture of care, collaboration, and positivity that emanates from all aspects of this practice. I am continuously impressed with the sheer amount of passion and the incredible level of talent that everyone at Qi has. There is truly an embrace of celebrating every person’s strengths and individuality.
I feel so fortunate to have met the incredible families and children that I have thus far, and I cannot wait to get to know them more as they continue on their own journeys. Being a part of this team and the ability to work alongside Qi’s families is truly inspiring to continually become a better version of myself – and I can’t wait to see where that leads me.”
Coach Bailey is an individual of diverse and intense interests, and has always had a passion for guiding children. Through multiple disciplines in universities across the province, from fine art at AUA, to Automotive Service Technology at SAIT, to German and then mathematics at the University of Lethbridge, her underlying wish has been to bring that experience back into work with children. In Lethbridge she earned the “Highly Recommend” grade in her education practicum and brought her skills to the frontlines of childcare at the Boys and Girls Club, working closely with children with higher support needs. Herself neurodiverse, she has an innate ability to engage with children on the spectrum and meet them on their terms, understanding firsthand many of the challenges they face. After moving to Edmonton to start a family with her wife, she was drawn to Qi Creative’s passions-as-strengths approach to empowering kids and their community. Bailey also plays the accordion, has composed music for video games, authored a peer-reviewed journal article on the behavioural ecology of birdsong, and, after twelve years of university, has yet to receive an undergraduate degree.
“The first month has been a raucous of new faces, some new habits, and all kinds of amazing new ideas. When I was first introduced to Qi Creative, I thought it seemed too good to be true, but the nature of the place is openness and the understanding of humanity; it’s exactly as wonderful as it seems. I’m so supported and I feel valued, appreciated, and awesome. Being surrounded by so many passionate and inspiring humans, which includes not only the rest of the Qi team but also the dedicated families we work for, raises me up to be the best human I can be, too.”
