Volunteer Spotlight
Our volunteers are the backbone of MCLD. Discover the stories of the incredible individuals who dedicate their time and talent to our community, year after year.
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The Power of Showing Up “For the Love of It”
We are incredibly excited to introduce the very first edition of our Volunteer Spotlight series! This new series is our way of pulling back the curtain to celebrate the amazing people who make the MCLD community what it is today. To kick things off, we sat down with Emma, a dedicated leader and long-time volunteer who has been a pillar of our programs since 2018.
From the Soccer Field to the Pool
Emma’s journey with us didn’t start in an office or a classroom; it started on a soccer pitch. While volunteering for a local soccer program, she discovered a genuine passion for working with children with special needs. Seeking more ways to give back, she was pointed toward our Aqua KIDS program.
What began as a Friday night commitment quickly turned into a multi-year journey. “Even though you typically want your Friday nights off,” Emma reflects, “it never feels like a chore.” By 2019, she had stepped into leadership roles, serving as both a gym facilitator and an art facilitator, guiding both the children and her fellow volunteers.
Finding a Different View on Life
For Emma, the draw to this work is the unique perspective the children provide.
She notes that they often have a different way of understanding the world, which “makes things fun” and challenges her to move “outside the mold of traditional earning” to adapt to each child’s individual needs.
She recalls one particular moment from her first year that stayed with her. She was working with a nonverbal child with autism. By only their second session together, as their mother arrived to pick them up, they looked at Emma and clearly said, “Bye, Emma.” Their mother was stunned; it usually took them years of knowing their teachers before they could say their names. It’s these “real impact” moments that define the volunteer experience.
Lessons Beyond the Classroom
When she isn’t at the MCLD, Emma is finishing her PhD in Neuropsychology, researching nonverbal memory in adults. She also works in schools and private clinics, evaluating children with ADHD and learning difficulties. While her academic path is rigorous, she credits her time volunteering with teaching her things a textbook never could:
Self-Acceptance: She’s learned not to take herself quite so seriously.
Perspective: Seeing how others navigate social struggles has made her more accepting of everyone—including herself.
Validation: Her time here confirmed her lifelong goal of working with children with special needs professionally.
A Vision for the Future
Emma’s hope for the MCLD is to see it grow and reach even more people. She is particularly passionate about raising awareness for “invisible disabilities”—the learning challenges that people often hide or feel a stigma around. Her goal is for the community to become a place where anyone feels comfortable seeking the resources they need.
For those on the fence about volunteering, Emma has simple advice: “Go for it.” She suggests starting with something you’re genuinely interested in, so you aren’t just “giving time,” but doing something truly “for the love of it.”
Inspired by Emma’s story? We are always looking for new faces to join our team and help make an impact! Get in touch, info@ldmontreal.ca.
From the Soccer Pitch to Specialized Dentistry
Let’s catch up with Frédérique. Today, she’s taking the lessons she learned at MCLD and applying them to a specialized Dentistry career!
A Journey of Connection
Frédérique’s path to the MCLD was paved by friendship. While coaching soccer with our previous spotlight feature, Emma, she was encouraged to bring her love for working with children to our programs. What started as a volunteer role with the NDG Lions Adapted Soccer Program transitioned into a deep involvement with MCLD from 2019 to 2024.
Even through the high work load of dental school, Frédérique found that Friday nights with the kids weren’t an obligation—they were a release. “It was the highlight of my week,” she shares, reflecting on how the program allowed her to see kids simply “be kids,” away from the pressures and labels they might face elsewhere.
Bridging Two Worlds
Frédérique’s professional life is now as demanding as it is rewarding. After dental school at McGill University, she moved to Boston to pursue a residency at a school with a program in medically complex and neurodiverse patients and attributes her experience volunteering with the MCLD as a motivating factor in her decision to do so.
She has now become a “specialist” in the eyes of her mentors, often being the first choice to treat patients who require a little extra patience and a different communication style.
One of her most “real impact” moments happened at the intersection of these two worlds. At Aqua KIDS, she got to talking to a father who was anxious about his child’s dental care. Because of the bond they had formed through the MCLD, Frédérique was able to act as a bridge—helping to screen the child and ensuring he was paired with a provider who understood his specific needs.
“It was so cool to see the mix of my two passions,” she says, “and how my career could directly impact a child I knew from the program.”
Lessons Learned
Volunteering isn’t always about smooth sailing; it’s about how you handle the waves. Frédérique recalls that while the programs were mostly fun and games, there were “crises” that tested the team’s resilience. “We were always able to resolve it, but it reminded me that although we treat these kids as kids – there are still important nuances to the environment and relationships we are building” she notes. These moments taught her that working with special needs children isn’t about being perfect—it’s about being flexible, adapting your speech, and working as a team.
Beyond the skills, she found a support system. “The friends I made along the way… the volunteer team was a family,” she says. “Everyone who works with the MCLD is so kind and shares the same motivations.”
The “Big Picture” and a Return to Montreal
While she is currently making waves in Boston, Frédérique’s long-term sights are set back home. She has seen the gaps in the Montreal healthcare system, where specialized dental clinics are often at capacity. Her dream? To return to the Montreal General Hospital and use her expertise to expand their capacity, opening more “chairs” and developing clinics modeled after the world-class facilities she’s working in now.
Frédérique’s Parting Advice
For those who aren’t sure where to start with volunteering, Frédérique suggests looking inward first. “Find something you like doing—for me, it was soccer—and then it’s going to be a good time no matter what.”
We are so proud of the work Frédérique is doing in the field of special needs dentistry and can’t wait to see her bring that expertise back to Montreal!
Stay tuned for our next spotlight! In the meantime, are you interested in joining the MCLD “family”? Contact us today at info@ldmontreal.ca to learn about our current volunteer opportunities.