Graduate Profile

When it comes to peak experiences, Jordan Kerton's climb up Mount Kilimanjaro with her client Brock Metcalf and an off-road wheelchair tops them all.

Kerton, Metcalf and team set a world wheelchair altitude record by climbing to the 19,000-foot Stella Point on the fabled African mountain. The climb was sponsored by the BC Association for Community Living to raise funds and awareness to help people living with disabilities in their communities.

"We made the climb to build awareness that anything is possible, like Brock wanting to climb this mountain," said Kerton. "He had this dream and it came true."

Kerton met Metcalf through her work as a therapeutic recreation practitioner and care worker. When Metcalf - who has cerebral palsy - was selected by the North Shore Disability Resource Centre to make the climb, Kerton worked closely with him to make it a reality.

Kerton assembled a five-member climb team. Metcalf used a trail rider (an off-road wheelchair provided by the Disability Foundation) during the nine-day climb in February. The expedition gave new meaning to the term "steep learning curve."

"It was difficult," said Kerton. "I did Brock's care work during the climb and it was quite the adventure. It was a huge learning experience for me."

Another major learning experience Kerton met was the Therapeutic Recreation at Douglas College. The North Vancouver resident had been working as a private, in-home care giver, mostly with people with spinal cord injuries, before entering the program in 2003.

The program trains Therapeutic Recreation Practitioners (TRP) like Kerton to work with people who have disabilities or illnesses that prevent them from having a healthy leisure lifestyle. TRPs provide meaningful leisure activities that help their clients achieve the quality of life they deserve.

For Kerton, the program was a perfect fit.

"I've always been athletic and I enjoy working with my clients. I thought I wanted to be a nurse, but that changed when I felt the excitement of helping someone do something they thought they'd never do again, like go swimming," says Kerton.

"It's a life-transforming experience to help people do the things they want to do and to realize that life doesn't end after an injury."

Kerton graduated from the Therapeutic Recreation Diploma Program in 2005 and works as a self-employed TRP and care worker.

Starting in September 2006, students will be able to earn their Bachelor of Therapeutic Recreation from Douglas College -- the first degree of its kind to be offered in British Columbia. The degree has graduates like Kerton considering a return to school.

"I may go back and get my next two years. My experience in the program was phenomenal and I can only imagine how much more fulfilling it will be with an extra two years," she says.

For more information on the Therapeutic Recreation Program at Douglas College, please contact Co-Coordinator Tricia Rachfall at 604-777-6237 or rachfallt@douglas.bc.ca .