If you have any questions please email: socialprescribing@AllianceON.org.
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Outline for the day
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Arrival, Registration, Breakfast & Networking
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Impact of Social Prescribing across Ontario and Canada
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Using Culturally Safe Practices to Build Meaningful Relationships with Indigenous Communities
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Research Results and Program Planning – How it’s Done!
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Poster Presentations and Conversation Tables
Join presenters for informal discussions and knowledge sharing.
Pick up to 3 topics to discuss out of:
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Data, Socio-Demographic Collection, PSS forms
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Community Initiative Tool
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Links2Wellbeing and Seniors Active Living Centres
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Healthcare Excellence Canada – Community Paramedics Social Prescribing Program
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Woolwich CHC – A Framework for Social Prescribing at Intake
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Experiential Activities – Social Prescriptions
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Writers Collective of Canada: Re/writing Connection
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Dancing with Parkinson's: A Social Prescribing for Brain Health
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Community Singing for Connection and Wellbeing
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Choose 1 skill-building session and engage in hands-on learning related to data collection and use, system navigation and client advocacy, and more.
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Confirmed presenters and facilitators to date include:
Rebekah Clause - Program Coordinator, Indigenous Primary Health Care Council (IPHCC)
Rebekah Clause is a member of Six Nations of the Grand River and the Bear Clan, with mixed Mohawk, English, and French ancestry. As a Program Coordinator with IPHCC's Traditional Wellness and Reconciliation team, she brings over 17 years of experience in community development, advocacy, and engagement. Her work focuses on Indigenous health advocacy, traditional wellness, and advancing reconciliation in healthcare systems. Rebekah does this work to honour her ancestors and their teachings, while helping build a healthier, more just future for the next seven generations and beyond.
Lillian Souliere-Lamb - Program Coordinator, Indigenous Primary Health Care Council (IPHCC)
Aanii, I'm Lillian Souliere-Lamb (she/her). I am of mixed ancestry (Anishinaabe/Scottish heritage) and a registered member of Wiikwemkoong Unceded Territory with ties to Serpent River First Nation, and I am currently living in Toronto, ON. I have completed my Bachelor of Social Work at McMaster University with a minor in Indigenous Studies, as well as a Master of Social Work in Indigenous Trauma and Resiliency from the University of Toronto. I come with experience working as a frontline worker in the mental health field, as well as come with experience in developing and delivering cultural safety curriculum with a focus on healthcare and mental health care.
Sara Bhatti, Learning Health System Manager, Alliance for Healthier Communities
Isabelle (Izzie) Fortuna, Research and Policy Analyst, Alliance for Healthier Communities
Evaluating Health Promotion Programs in Community Health Centres in Ontario
Community Health Centres (CHCs) deliver health promotion programming as part of their approach to prevent and manage chronic disease. This presentation will share findings from a standardized evaluation of chronic disease management health promotion programs across CHCs and highlights the impact of such programs on client outcomes.
Shelley Lepp (she/her) - Chief Executive Officer, WCC facilitator
Shelley joined Writers Collective of Canada as a volunteer facilitator in 2018, as Co-Executive Director in 2019, and as Chief Executive Officer in 2024. She holds a certificate in Management of Volunteer Programming in addition to a Master’s Degree in Adult Education and Community Development from OISE, University of Toronto. Her SSHRC-funded research focused on the practice and pedagogy of expressive writing as a non-clinical mental health intervention. Shelley is a passionate writer, mental-health advocate, and community builder.
Marijke Vander Klok (she/her) - Manager of Volunteers & Programs, WCC facilitator
Marijke stumbled upon WCC in 2019 and soon engaged as a volunteer facilitator training. While completing a Master’s degree in Adult Education and Community Development at OISE, she joined the WCC staff team in 2022. With keen interests in building community, promoting social justice, and encouraging volunteerism, she is proud to support WCC's volunteer facilitator community and expand the reach of accessible writing workshops across Canada.
Aldonna Stremecki (she/her) - Special Projects and Strategic Partnerships Associate, WCC facilitator
With WCC since 2022, Aldonna first trained with Writers Collective of Canada as a workshop facilitator before joining its team as Special Projects Associate. Previously, she taught English and Drama, directed theatre, and went on to work with Friendship in Action, a charity which facilitated peer-to-peer support groups in schools. At WCC, Aldonna co-ordinates virtual and in-person events such as arts-health expert panels and spoken word evenings which celebrate its writers. She is deeply appreciative of the opportunity to support and write with the magnificent, brave voices of WCC, and to witness its powerful community building.
Re/writing Connection
Experience for yourself how Writers Collective of Canada's (WCC) powerful workshops ignite meaningful human connection! For over a decade, WCC has partnered with nearly 200 community, social service, and health care agencies across the country to provide accessible arts-health programming proven to create connection, increase resilience, and strengthen self-advocacy. Come write with us: share your voice, listen deeply to one another, and build community one story at a time.
Jessica Dargo Caplan
Dancing With Parkinson's - Director, Outreach and Engagement
A community-engaged arts leader with over 25 years of experience in multidisciplinary arts programming grounded in social practice. As Director of Outreach and Engagement with Dancing With Parkinson's (DWP), Jessica works at the intersection of arts and health, building strategic partnerships, leading outreach and engagement initiatives, and developing evaluation frameworks that centre participant voices, increasing access to DWP's free, research-backed dance for brain health programs for people living with Parkinson's and seniors. She holds a Master's of Education from OISE/University of Toronto and volunteers on the Board of Directors with Henna, an arts and cultural organization and online media platform led by newcomer and refugee artists, writers and activists.
Claire Wootten
Dancing With Parkinson’s Instructor and Arts in Health Consultant
Claire is a graduate of the Professional Division at Canada’s Royal Winnipeg Ballet and of the Teacher Training Program at Canada’s National Ballet School. She holds an MA in Dance from York University and was on faculty at York’s Department of Dance for nearly 30 years, specializing in contemporary ballet and dance education.
A certified Dance for PD® Teaching Artist, Claire joined the teaching roster of Dancing with Parkinson’s (DWP) Canada in 2015. In addition to her teaching at DWP, she is the Arts in Health Consultant, connecting DWP with institutions, organizations, and individuals practicing and advocating for social prescribing.
Claire is also certified Instructor of 3-D Workout ™, an integrated fitness program based on the work of Irmgard Bartenieff and Rudolf Laban.
Other interests that continue to take her on stimulating adventures: studying music, practicing Argentine Tango, attending conferences, and serving on a patient advisory council for the University of Toronto’s Department of Family and Community Medicine.
Dancing with Parkinson’s: A Social Prescription for Brain Health
Participants will experience a short, adapted excerpt from a Dancing with Parkinson’s (DWP) class, followed by a brief introduction to the social prescription model, including how it is delivered through in-person, Daily Dance Connect and hybrid formats, and opportunities to connect with or pilot similar programming in their own SALC or seniors programming. No dance experience or particular mobility level is required; participants can take part seated or standing, or simply observe if they prefer.
Kate Keenan
Singing Together: Community Singing for Connection and Wellbeing
Kate Keenan is a Toronto-based community song leader, expressive arts therapist, multidisciplinary artist, and Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying). She is a co-founder of Songbirds and was among the first trained Singing Mamas leaders to bring the UK-founded community singing model to Canada. Kate has facilitated hundreds of singing experiences with children, families, newcomers, caregivers, and community groups. Most recently, she co-facilitated Singing Together at Access Alliance, an arts-based community singing program within Access Alliance's social prescribing work, supporting newcomer mental wellbeing, belonging, and cross-cultural connection. She is currently working with health-care partners to expand opportunities for community singing within health-care settings.
Community singing is a simple yet powerful way to nurture connection, belonging, and wellbeing. Join us for a joyful, participatory workshop where simple songs are taught by ear in a welcoming space where every voice belongs. Inspired by Kate's work co-facilitating Singing Together at Access Alliance, we'll experience how singing together can support healthier people and stronger communities.
