Linda Perry of Langley City is a recipient of the Order of Canada.
The annual list of 2023 appointees to the Order of Canada was released by Governor General of Canada, Mary Simon, on Dec. 28.
“It’s pretty surreal,” Perry told the Langley Advance Times. “I’m unbelievably honoured, it’s amazing.”
She was first informed via email in October, but it simply requested she call a number to talk about the Order of Canada.
“I thought somebody I know must be getting the Order of Canada and I was a reference. But no, in fact, I got the Order of Canada and it was a shock,” she chuckled.
Perry was given the Order of Canada in recognition of her “visionary leadership at Vela Canada, and for her transformational advocacy on behalf of people living with disabilities,” said the announcement.
For 33 years, she was the executive director at Vela Canada, a not-for-profit based in B.C. that assists people with disabilities by developing a Mircoboard.
Perry initially got involved with Vela when it was a Housing Society in the mid-1980’s and provided affordable housing for people with disabilities.
“The thinking at that time, was that if people had decent places to live in the community that they can afford, they’d be part of the community,” she explained.
What they found, however, was that people were living in the community but weren’t of the community. Board members came together to brainstorm ways to support people to connect with the community in real ways.
Following hours of research and speaking with experts across Canada, the board learned about Microboards first started in Winnipeg.
At the same time, families were rallying due to concerns some people were going to be left behind because they were considered too complex to serve in the community.
“Because of my personal belief system, I supported them… they were saying nobody should be left behind,” Perry said.
Following parents’ lobbying efforts, Vela held its first pilot of a Microboard in the 1990s.
Described as a revolutionary idea, Perry said Microboarding is the idea that a small group formed of people with close connections – often family or friends – to the person with a disability to support them in living their best life that they want.
Perry explained that funding supported the Microboards in customizing services for their individual, such as arranging services later in the day for someone who can’t start their day in the morning.
“The underlying philosophy of it all was self empowerment to the individuals themselves… about people being able to take control of their own lives and live them the way they felt would work for them.”
Growing up at the tail end of the baby boom, Perry lived in a neighbourhood with a lot of kids with various abilities. One friend she had was deaf and could lip read. As a child, Perry thought it was a super power and learned a little bit and held secret conversations together.
She noticed some of the kids were disappearing from her school over time, and when she asked her parents, it was explained to her that the kids were sent to a respite home specialized for kids with disabilities.
At age 13, Perry started volunteering there to learn why kids were going there, eventually she came to work there.
“It was like a passion from that point forward about bringing people home. There was no reason for these guys to ever be gone,” she shared.
She pursued an degree in special education and sociology before joining Vela.
“[I saw it] from a different angle… I wasn’t trying to fix anybody, I was trying to fix the system so that people were more included.”
Perry, now the special projects coordinator at Vela, considers herself lucky to be a recipient of the Order of Canada among many others.
“There’s some pretty amazing people on this list. I’m really honoured,” she said.
READ ALSO: Langley Township firefighters donate $12,000 to 12 charities
IN OTHER NEWS: Langley welcomes baby boy on New Year’s Day