The Well Endowed Podcast

On this episode, our correspondent, Danielle Paradis introduces us to Kyle Dubé, the executive director at YOUCAN Youth Services . Kyle tells us how being relentless can make a difference. YOUCAN helps young people out of harm’s way, and onto a path of economic independence. They do this through a series of programs that empower healthy decision-making.  They also help youth to return to school an...

In February 2023, Betty and George Screpnek created a fund to celebrate their son, Wade, on his 50th birthday. It is the Wade Screpnek Speech Therapy Fund , and it will assist families with the cost of accessing speech therapy. On this episode, we meet Betty Screpnek, donor, and Janet Tryhuba, executive director of Edmonton Down Syndrome Society . They show us how vibrant communities are built  wh...

Boyle Street Community Services has been supporting people experiencing homelessness and poverty since 1971. And for many of those years, it was operating out of a dilapidated facility on 101st Street and 105th Avenue.    In late 2021, Boyle Street announced it was purchasing a new building a few blocks north of their original location and they were getting set to break ground on okimaw peyesew ka...

On this episode, our correspondent Theodora MacLeod introduces us to the very talented AV (Ann Vriend) . We learn about the inner-city has shaped her music, and how one front-porch in the neighbourhood of McCauley has brought people together. AV was a recipient of a 2022 Edmonton Artists’ Trust Fund Award.  The Edmonton Artists’ Trust Fund (EATF) is a joint initiative of Edmonton Arts Council and...

On this episode, freelance producer  Emily Rendell-Watson  explores new innovations in local agriculture that could impact the future of food security in Edmonton.   Food security is the topic for our 2023 Vital Signs report.   Edmonton Community Foundation (ECF)  and  Edmonton Social Planning Council (ESPC)  have partnered to create this report, and we’ve learned a lot about food in our city.   I...

On this episode, we meet Eric Rice, Eric recently created the Edmonton Affordable Housing Maintenance Fund here at ECF, to support people experiencing housing or income insecurity. Eric has been involved in housing and homelessness in various ways over the years. It is a complex and overwhelming issue, and the people experiencing houselessness are often met with stigmatization and judgement. With...

On this episode, we learn about how the Canada Cultural Investment Fund (CCIF) matches endowment donations to create a sustainable funding source for arts organizations like Edmonton Opera and Ukrainian Shumka Dancers + Shumka School of Dance . CCIF is a program created by the Government of Canada. Their Endowment Incentives component provides matching funds to endowments that support professional...

On this episode, freelance producer Emily Rendell-Watson , explores the nuances around accessing food and why our goal should be to help people thrive, not just survive. Food security is the topic for our 2023 Vital Signs report. Earlier in August, in our Hunger Happens Here episode , we talked about Edmonton’s food security landscape over the past 10 years. We also looked at some of the day-to-da...

Death eventually comes for all of us. We don’t have a choice in this matter, but we do have a lot of choice when it comes to what happens after we pass. On this episode, Our producer, Lisa Pruden, sits down with Victoria Jones to discuss some wishes that people have for themselves and their pets when they die – and   let’s just say some of these get pretty creative and may, or may not...

On this episode, our correspondent, Aubrianna Snow , takes us to Bent Arrow Traditional Healing Society . Bent Arrow was established in 1994 to support Indigenous children, youth and families. Their mission is to empower Indigenous people to grow spiritually, emotionally, physically and mentally. And to see them walk proudly in both Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities. Executive Director, Ch...

On this episode, our correspondent, Scott Lilwall , takes us to the 2nd oldest migration monitoring observatory in Canada: the Beaverhill Bird Observatory (BBO). BBO was established in 1984 and has gathered decades of datasets that help them track changes in bird populations and how they migrate. And they boast several programs to encourage education, research, and community knowledge. Programs li...

On this episode our correspondent, Emily Rendell-Watson , explores food security in Edmonton. Food security was the subject of ECF’s very first Vital Signs report, published back in 2013. This year, on our 10 th anniversary of Vital Signs, we are revisiting that topic and taking a deep dive into Edmonton’s food security landscape to see what has changed over time, for better or worse.    For examp...

On this episode our correspondent, Aubrianna Snow , learns about the Black Equity in Alberta Rainforest (BEAR) initiative and how the philosophy of Ubuntu (meaning: I am because we are) can help us better understand their approach to health equity. BEAR was founded by the Ribbon Rouge Foundation to strengthen health equity in African, Caribbean and Black (ACB) communities. ECF has been honoured to...

On this episode, we hear an inspiring conversation about the power of plays and growing up in Edmonton’s scrappy theatre scene with Louise Casemore . Louise is an award-winning playwright and self-described “Prairie Nuisance.” She is a dramaturg, and in 2021 she published a national study on new play development titled “Surveying the Landscape.” Louise also has an interest in human resources. She...

On this episode, we meet The Melisizwe Brothers . Marc, Seth and Zacary James began training in music as early as ages 4 to 7. Encouraged by their families, and with each other’s support, they have since established themselves on the music scene. The Melisizwe Brothers have performed internationally and have appeared on several television shows including Netflix’s Mowtown Magic, Showtime at the Ap...

On this episode, our correspondent, Emily Rendell-Watson speaks to Professor Irshad Manji : Best selling author and founder of Moral Courage College,  and a recipient of Oprah’s “Chutzpah Award” for boldness. Professor Manji is an accomplished leadership scholar whose work focuses on teaching people how to engage in constructive conversations. She will be presenting her talk: “From Polarizat...

Though the Supreme Court’s ruling on Vriend v. Alberta helped pave the way for equality for Canada’s 2SLGBTQI+ communities, maintaining the road to dignity for all has been tumultuous. There have been many setbacks, followed by advances, followed by setbacks in the subsequent years. It took the Government of Alberta (GOA) 11 years to officially add the words “sexual orientation” to its human right...

The Supreme Court’s ruling on Vriend v. Alberta has impacted the lives of countless 2SLGBTQI+ people. Not just in Alberta, not just in Canada, but around the globe. In this episode we look at the ripple effect Vriend v. Alberta has had over the past 25 years since first making its splash at the Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench in Edmonton. We also return to where this story began, and look at...

The Supreme Court had ruled that sexual orientation should be read into Alberta’s human rights legislation. But the Alberta Government had one more tool it could use to deny equality to its Queer population. That option was the Notwithstanding Clause. The province slipped into turmoil as the Alberta Government debated whether or not to invoke the Notwithstanding Clause. As Premier Ralph Klein rema...

Dewlin Vriend and his legal team returned home from the Supreme Court of Canada to find a massive crowd waiting for them at the Edmonton International Airport. Alberta was in a frenzy, and the anticipation built as the province waited for the Supreme Court to issue its ruling on the future of equality for Alberta’s Queer and Trans community. It was going to be a close call.  Delwin’s legal team’s...

Sheila Greckol had delivered her opening arguments at the Supreme Court of Canada. It went well as she presented her submission in support of reading in sexual orientation as a protected ground in Alberta’s human rights legislation. Now it was the Government of Alberta’s turn to defend its stance. As the Province’s lead counsel took to the lecturn, the equality of countless Canadians hung in the b...

The Supreme Court of Canada granted Delwin Vriend’s legal team the leave to appeal Justice McClung’s ruling in the Alberta Court of Appeal. As the team arrived in Ottawa, the excitement and tension was palpable. It was their last shot to compel the Government of Alberta to include “sexual orientation” as  protected ground in the Province’s human rights legislation. In this episode, we take a deep...

With his legal team behind him, Delwin Vriend won his case at the Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench. Justice Russel pulled no punches in her written ruling, stating that discrimination against the gay and lesbian communities was an historical, universal, notorious, and indisputable social reality.  It was a big win for Delwin and his team, however it would be short lived as the Government of Alberta...

When Delwin Vriend was fired from his job at a Christian college for being gay, he had two choices; he could accept his termination, or fight back. He chose to fight. The first step was to file a complaint to the Alberta Human Rights Commission, but after the Commission denied his request it was time to take the Alberta Government to court. In this episode we look at the series of serendipitous ev...

In the previous episode of Vriend Versus Alberta we learned how the creation of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms laid the groundwork for 2SLGBTQI+ activists to begin pressing for progressive reform in Alberta.   All that was needed was a cause to rally behind; an injustice that could be used to launch a challenge to the exclusion of sexual orientation from Alberta’s human rights legisla...