JENNIFER BEST

“I am so proud to be part of the social profit sector in our community.”

“Fort McMurray is the place where you can reinvent yourself,” says Jennifer. After moving here from Burlington, Ontario, the only thing she misses is the shopping. “I love the people, the summers are the best in Alberta, the rivers are amazing to paddle, and overall the outdoors is just an amazing place to spend time. The great landscape in which the region exists is the best. Jennifer is a past Chair of the Support through Housing Team Society, which provides advocacy for and support to the ‘hard to house clients’, those who need chronic support services. Jennifer is also a member of the Board of the Alberta Association of Immigrant Serving as well as the Wood Buffalo Housing and Development Corporation.

And then there’s what she does for a living. As the Senior Director of Community Programs and Housing Initiatives at the YMCA, Jennifer and her husband knew firsthand what people were going through in 2016 as they were one of the many who lost their home in the fire. Yet Jennifer sees her current work as some of the most important she has ever done. “I am so proud to be part of the social profit sector in our community. Our sector has worked hard to be recognized as contributors to the economic diversity of our community. I am really proud of the work that has been done within our sector as it relates to the recovery. I am an advocate for the vulnerable populations that live in our region and would like to think that my advocacy has helped get me on this list. I am also a strong believer in giving a hand up, not a hand out, and to achieve this I have committed my time to volunteer and give back.”