Meet Carleton Ambassador Christine

Each new volunteer that comes into the Cam’s Kids fold brings a new energy that is vital to the foundation, not only in terms of maintaining its momentum but also key to its growth moving forward. 

At Carleton University in Ottawa, Christine Crowe is proof of just that.

First introduced to Cam’s Kids in fall 2019 at a university club event, the London, Ontario native was immediately impressed with its mission; so impressed that she became increasingly involved to the point where she was named an Ambassador just this past January.

 “They were looking for volunteers and I thought it was a great organization,” recalls Christine, a Neuroscience and Mental Health student minoring in Psychology.

“I was super impressed with the Foundation’s website before I became an Ambassador. There’s a lot of great content on there that I found helpful for myself.”

“As a volunteer, it’s a little bit more of a relaxed club. I think that’s attractive to students as some have very big schedules. Each volunteer can initiate when they feel they have the time or an idea.”

Above all, Christine was, and remains, drawn by Cam’s Kids’ “family” feel.

“As an organization, it’s not preachy and there’s content [on the website] that’s relatable. Someone will read one of the stories and think "Oh, that’s just like me. I’ve dealt with anxiety personally and I’ve seen it in family and friends, so I definitely knew it was an issue. There’s a need and I think Cam’s Kids goes about providing resources and events in a very relatable way for students.”

Since becoming an Ambassador, Christine has represented Cam’s Kids at the Glebe Collegiate High School Health and Wellness Fair, and she was a big asset to the success of Cam’s Kids participation in the annual Bell Let’s Talk event at Carleton University. Christine has fully immersed herself in Cam’s Kid’s specific events such as the Chocolate Hearts Campaign designed to lessen students’ pre-exam anxiety by letting them know they’re not alone and that someone is always willing to listen.

“Cam’s Kids is giving me an opportunity to chat with more students; building relationships with students and understanding what their struggles are and what their major need is,” says Christine. 

If you’ve guessed that Christine is not one to sit still for long, well, you’ve guessed right. Her drive promises good things ahead for the Foundation’s already considerable footprint at Carleton. Her ambition lead her to secure one of three team lead positions at Carleton next year.

“I’d love to do more work with other clubs. It can be so much better if we collaborate with other clubs that have similar missions and can jointly provide some different resources but still in the field of mental health and anxiety. And I think there’s an opportunity for Cam’s Kids to go into more high schools and maybe have resources targeted toward high school students making the transition from high school to college or university.” 

While Christine has yet to meet the Hicks family, she’s very familiar with its story. 

“To build something so beautiful out of something so tragic takes immense strength. It’s a great example to other families or people who might be going through something similar. It’s really quite incredible what they have done.”