Hoor Ulain Nassani
Strength, tenacity, and intelligence are just a few words that come to mind when describing 2022 Easter Seals Provincial Easter Seals Ambassador, Hoor Ulain. In her own words, “I am a person who never gives up despite the many challenges that I face.” The 17-year-old is currently in Grade 12 at John Fraser Secondary School in her hometown, but she already has big plans for the future. This hard-working student plans to pursue a career in psychology, working either as a clinical, counselling, or developmental psychologist. An avid writer, she also aims to become an author and publish her life story as a book. And her plans don’t stop there. Hoor Ulain dreams of becoming a mother one day and building a family of her own.
Hoor Ulain currently lives in Mississauga with her parents, younger brother Aws, younger sister Laureen and their cat, Petal. She was born with cerebral palsy spastic triplegia, which affects her legs and left arm. True to her strong nature, she maintains her independence with the support of a variety of mobility and accessibility equipment, which Easter Seals Ontario helped her acquire. She uses a manual wheelchair for indoor use, a power chair for outdoor use, a stander, and a modified van with a ramp so that she can travel with her family.
Hoor Ulain attended Easter Seals Camp for two years and looks back on these memories fondly. When asked to describe her favourite part of camp, she says “It’s not easy to pick a favourite thing about the whole camp experience. There is no word in the English dictionary that can fully describe what this experience feels like and the kind of impact it has on me and every other camper.”
As an Ambassador, Hoor Ulain hopes to spread awareness about children and youth with disabilities and the challenges that they face. She also plans to use her platform to drive the cause for greater accessibility throughout the province of Ontario. “In order for us to live an independent and proactive life, we need to have a world that’s equipped in a way that is 100% accessible. As a result, we would feel like we have no boundaries to achieving our goals and dreams just like anybody else would,” she says.
Despite the challenges of her disability, Hoor Ulain says that she is “grateful for cerebral palsy, because it taught me what being strong looks like.” This year, she looks forward to empowering and advocating for other youth with disabilities, spreading disability and accessibility awareness, keeping in mind her personal slogan, “accessibility matters.” She is also excited to leave her own mark on Easter Seals’ 100-year history. In her own words, “Easter Seals has provided me with assistive devices that made and continue to make my life easier and has also given me opportunities to make happy memories in the camps. I would like to contribute my efforts to encourage people to donate to Easter Seals to help make more children and young adults in the province of Ontario benefit from these life-changing experiences.”
Sebastien Parent
Sebastien is a warm and charismatic 16-year-old who uses his humour and charm to light up the room. He is currently in Grade 11 at Bishop Alexander Carter Catholic Secondary School, where his favourite subject is Information Technology. Sebastien is a hard-working student, voted valedictorian of his grade 8 graduating class. As he plans for his future, Sebastien hopes to go to college and study Public Relations or News Media.
Sebastien resides in Sudbury, where he lives with his parents, older brother Ashton, two dogs named Ellie and Daisy, and two cats named Echo and Jasmine. When he isn’t in school or at his part-time job at Walmart, some of his hobbies include videogames, swimming, tech design and camping with friends and family. As someone with many musical talents, Sebastien plays the trumpet and drums, beatboxes, and knows just about everything there is to know about keyboards. He is also looking forward to attending Easter Seals camp for the first time this year.
Sebastien was born with cerebral palsy (CP), a neurological condition that affects muscle spasticity and makes certain motor functions difficult. He says that CP mostly affects his legs, so he uses a walker, wheelchair, and canes to get around. Although he requires assistance with certain tasks such as reaching things in high places and setting up equipment for bathing and showering, Sebastien describes himself as an independent person.
As an Easter Seals Ambassador, Sebastien hopes to be a role model for kids with disabilities across the province and show them that anything is possible. This year, he is looking forward to spreading his message that children and youth with physical disabilities are “just like everyone else and that we deserve kindness and love, along with the fact that we want to be treated the same.” With so many fantastic upcoming opportunities for meeting new people, Sebastien is excited for all the new connections he will form this year. In keeping with his positive outlook and sparkling personality, Sebastian hopes to use his platform to spread joy and love and empower kids across Ontario with physical disabilities to achieve their dreams!