AdaptAbilities

Some families wait years for disability funding. So what happens this summer, this weekend, on the next PD day? We talk respite, bursaries, and bridge funding that keep kids included. Listen now and tell us what support is missing where you live?

New podcast! 📢 We chat with Michelle Pearce Hordal, Founder and CEO of the Alberta AdaptAbilities Association, to unpack what respite really means for families raising children with disabilities and why “belonging” is the goal, not a bonus. We also dig into funding gaps, long waitlists, and how community connection, employment, and life skills support can change what adulthood looks like for the people AdaptAbilities serves.

Listen to the conversation to learn:
📌How goal-directed respite supports both caregivers and kids
📌 How AdaptAbilities grew from matching families to a province-wide vision
📌 Out-of-school time creates the biggest childcare gaps in disability support that show the emotional load families carry and what relief can look like
📌 Plans across Alberta and what it takes to “do it right”
📌 Funding, bursaries, and why families can’t wait years for programs
📌 Supporting teens and adults through community connection, jobs, and independence
📌 Roles, guardianship, and long-term future planning
📌 Sustainability through an endowment fund, the Adapt Store, and operating an inclusive cafe in partnership with Lil E Coffee Cafe
📌 Why the “low overhead” expectation can limit nonprofit impact and talent

Listen to the podcast now:
https://www.buzzsprout.com/2113836/episodes/19204370"