We Are IH: Recreation worker shares her journey to inspire peers

October 31, 2024

Name: Emma Klassen (she/her/hers)
Job Title: Recreation Activity Worker
Years of service: 1
Worksite: Apple Valley & Hawthorn Park Adult Day Services
Community: Kelowna
Ancestral territory: syilx Nation
Favourite Quote /Advice to Live By: “Do better, be better.”

Emma is a daughter, sister, auntie, social worker, counsellor and recreational therapist, and a mother to five children.

Before joining Interior Health (IH), Emma worked as a counsellor for children and youth for six years with the Westbank First Nation. She loved her counselling career, and helped people and families with addiction, suicide and their day-to-day struggles. She also served as a bail supervisor for young offenders for several years.

When she was a counsellor, she and her team created a memorandum of understanding in partnership with the Ministry of Children and Family Development to create transparency in youth care.

In this Story…

Learn about Emma’s journey at IH

Explore recreation therapy worker Careers@IH

Learn about Emma’s journey at IH

Four adults holding a baby standing together in a home entryway, smiling. — Emma poses with her sister, sisters-in-law and niece.

Emma’s journey to IH is marked by heartache, life-threatening conditions, and triumph over trauma.

She was homeless and living in her van in April 2020 when she suffered an inoperable stroke. Her recovery was long, and she was isolated from her family and children due to the pandemic.

In April 2022, she was suddenly hospitalized and put on life support for eight weeks. She was given a five per cent chance to live. To this day, the specialists aren’t sure what happened. “I looked up at the sky that day and knew something was going to happen to me,” Emma recalls.

Since coming out of her life-threatening experience, she has rebuilt her life step by step. “Life is beautiful and there are no bad days. I have the most amazing relationship with my five beautiful children,” she says.

Today, Emma works in Adult Day Services at two locations in Kelowna: Apple Valley and Hawthorn Park. She loves helping her clients be active and socialize in a way that’s therapeutic to their well-being.

Two people horseback riding under a clear sky, with trees and a rustic building in the background. — Emma and her daughter Alexandra.

“I feel so lucky that I get to work with the most amazing clients—individuals who have built our community and have contributed in so many ways,” shares Emma. “I feel blessed to be a part of such a great team.”

Emma describes herself as happy, kind and passionate. She genuinely looks forward to getting up everyday, as cliché as it may sound. “It’s so easy to look forward to coming to work each day knowing I’m working for an organization that promotes health,” she says.

I’m proud of Adult Day Services (ADS) and the work that goes into making every day a success. My coworkers, the greeters, volunteers, surgeons, nurses and our great leadership make it so easy to come to work every day. Kara Cooper, ADS coordinator and clinical operations manager, and our team do such a great job in supporting ADS and ensuring we are heard and supported.

-- Emma Klassen

Three people smiling and posing at a table in front of a stone wall backdrop, with a glass of wine and a menu on the table. — Emma’s mom and son Shea sit with Emma at a restaurant.

In October 2024, Emma was invited to be a TEDx speaker in Grande Prairie, AB. She shared her inspiring journey of resilience and hope. TEDx called her talk “one of the most captivating stories we’ve ever encountered.”

“Doing the TEDx talk was just the beginning. Having survived and having made it through everything I’ve been through, I know my path is to educate and help others,” explains Emma, who is writing a book about her experiences. “I’ve been invited to do talks at various conferences. My focus is up-and-coming health-care providers and clinicians. I want to show them that there’s hope and the work they are doing does in fact help.”

Outside of work, Emma loves to bake—which she calls her “love language.” She enjoys spending time with her family and her kids. Her daughter Alexandra is in medical school, her son Max is a chef, her daughter Olivia is expecting her first baby, and she has two teen sons, Shea and Jackson, living at home.

Besides exploring the Okanagan’s beautiful lands and discovering trails and lakes, Emma has been known to dance in her kitchen with her sisters to country music and 90s pop.