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“Volunteering at the PACE always brightened my day.”

No matter how busy or stressed I was during the school year, volunteering at the PACE always brightened my day. As a volunteer, it's truly rewarding and humbling to be a part of a client's journey and see them progress over time, knowing that you are making a meaningful difference in their lives.

“McMaster PACE program meets our criteria of self-funding, excellent management, outstanding volunteers, and world class fitness programs”

The goal of the Foundation for Human Development is to assist local organizations that generate their own funding and have a mission to support projects that improve the lives of people in the community. The Foundation will consider financial support to projects that matches goals that focus on improving the lives of people with a development, mental, or physical disability, or financial hardships. McMaster PACE program meets our criteria of self-funding, excellent management, outstanding volunteers, and world class fitness programs like the MacWheelers Exercise Program for Adults with Spinal Cord Injury; the MacMSFITT program for individuals living with multiple sclerosis; MacSeniors Exercise and Wellness Program; MacWarriors Cancer Rehabilitation Program and research; MacCardiac Rehabilitation Program. We have had a successful relationship for the past 2 years and we expect to continue for many years to come.

“To this day I still visit clients both inside and outside the PACE on a regular basis as I truly do consider them friends.”

My name is Andrew Mikhail and I’m a former volunteer and staff member at the PACE. My first experience with PACE was after my first year of undergrad when I began volunteering in the MacWheelers exercise program. I truly enjoyed my summer volunteering there, helping out the clients in a very friendly and supportive environments. I found myself wanting to be there more often and it didn’t feel like a “volunteering task” but more of a place where I can come socialize with clients while helping them follow their exercise programs. During my second year, I increased my volunteer shifts to 3-4 times per week where I got to know more of the lovely clients and previous staff. During May 2016, I had the honour of being hired as a staff member for the MSFITT and MacWheelers program. I can confidently say that it was my favourite employment. Aside from building on my friendships with both staff and clients, I was able to have more responsibilities and further help clients by creating individualized exercise programs and leading one on one sessions on specialized equipment such as the lokomat and Zero-G. Unfortunately, I am no longer a staff member at PACE after beginning my master’s degree, but my experience there will stay with me forever. Many of the skills I learned at PACE including good clinical practice and modifying exercises to fit an individual have really helped me in my graduate studies while organizing my own research studies. To this day I still visit clients both inside and outside the PACE on a regular basis as I truly do consider them friends.