Carlene Donnelly recognized as a leader in our community
There are so many incredible leaders across our province who are making a difference in the lives of Albertans, and the Alberta Inspiration Awards are shedding light on their important work.
Hosted by the Government of Alberta, the Inspiration Awards recently honoured outstanding Albertans whose efforts are building awareness, contributing to violence prevention and advancing healthy relationships for us all. We’re thrilled to share that our very own Carlene Donnelly was recognized with an award, in the category of individual leadership in family violence prevention.
This recognition is important. Not only does it highlight Carlene’s commitment to instilling resilience in our community, but it shares the story of resilience as the building blocks needed for family violence prevention and overall community health. For Carlene, the journey started when she was brought on as Executive Director in 2003.
“Then, CUPS was like many nonprofits: a place where low-income and homeless individuals could get basic medical care and referral services. While helping thousands of clients over the years was important, it was becoming increasingly clear that these services only provided short-term solutions; that the cycle of poverty and trauma often continued once a client’s immediate needs were met,” recalls Carlene. “Not only was this approach suboptimal for the long-term success of this vulnerable population, it was also an inefficient use of limited resources. I was determined to bring about real change.”
Her vision was big and unprecedented. Through relentless effort, unwavering commitment and determination, Carlene led CUPS through uncharted waters, shifting away from the traditional non-profit operational model and applying an evidence-based, integrated care approach that can make a tangible, quantifiable difference.
Today, CUPS is the only organization in Canada applying the science of brain development to address the root causes of poverty and trauma, and actively participates in advancing this body of knowledge with the greater community.
We’re so proud of Carlane and are thrilled she was recognized for her impact.
Thank you to Honourable Rajan Sawhney and the Ministry of Community and Social Services for their support.
Interested in getting involved at CUPS? Click here.