UpLift: Burnaby, B.C. - Badge of Awesome

Enjoy a few laughs while revving up your resilience

No matter who you are, we all face stretches of stormy weather. UpLift is a one-of-a-kind wellness program designed to help you navigate those difficult times.

This webinar series was created by Josh Martin: a cancer survivor, author and regular guest facilitator for the Canadian Mental Health Association. In each of the modules below, you’ll find obstacle-busting advice and practical resources, drawing on lessons learned from life’s awesome and absurd moments.

Special thanks

A huge thank you to our amazing sponsors for making this resource possible!

Strive Counselling

Strive Counselling’s team of registered clinical counsellors offers general therapy services, as well as expertise in relationships, trauma, anxiety, and sport psychology. Our counsellors also come with diverse lived experiences to help you understand unique issues, including culture and identity. Reach out to us — we are eager to have a free consultation with you, to help you find your direction and reach your potential!

Learn more.

Strength Counselling Services

Strength Counselling Services offers online-only, affordable, culturally sensitive therapy. Our licensed, experienced therapists prioritize client needs, maintain ethical standards, and provide expert guidance. We offer comprehensive goal assessments, regular progress checks, and collaboration with other professionals. Ensuring privacy, transparency, and fostering mental wellness, we help clients manage challenges, improve relationships, and achieve personal growth.

Learn more.

Artfeels Counselling and Art Therapy

At Artfeels Counselling and Art Therapy, Xu, a trans/queer-affirming therapist, offers creative support for adults, youth, and children. Specializing in a holistic approach, Xu works with clients facing complex needs and intersecting identities, providing a safe and inclusive space for healing and self-expression.

Learn more.

Enjoy a free wellness webinar series

Lift up your inner awesomeness. Each self-directed module below features entertaining stories from my many misadventures, advice about tackling adversity and a collection of practical resources.

Module 1. Making your own luck: Lessons learned from a coin flip

Module 2. Improving adaptability: Lessons learned from an absurd Christmas tree

Module 3. Embracing teamwork: Lessons learned from a rogue haybale

Module 4. Leveraging tools: Lessons learned from a poorly chosen sledgehammer

Module 5. Learning humility: Lessons learned from a very brief career as a valet

Module 6. Failing forward: Lessons learned from banshee babies and buttered butts

Module 7. Avoiding shortcuts: Lessons learned from a giant backpack

Module 8. Redefining success: Lessons learned from an idiotic bet

Module 9. Letting go: Lessons learned from a gooey pit of clay

Module 10. Taking responsibility: Lessons learned from trying to catch a train

Module 11. Getting creative: Lessons learned from the toboggan hill

Module 12. Fuelling motivation: Lessons learned from sleeping in a barn

Module 13. Handing over control: Lessons learned from riding in a shopping cart

Module 14. Practising gratitude: Lessons learned from a very special list

Module 15. Prioritizing self-care: Lessons learned from a surprise birthday celebration

Module 16. Creating lasting change: Lessons learned from life’s awesome and absurd moments

Celebrate local difference-makers

As Mr. Rogers said, “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.’” And throughout Burnaby, you’ll find wonderful community organizations doing exactly that, stepping up to make a positive difference. Here are just a few that we think deserve a Badge of Awesome.