My name is Jolene Clark. When I was 6 and my sister was 12, our mother was diagnosed with lupus after being sick for more than a decade. Although I had been dealing with symptoms since around 2001, I was officially diagnosed with lupus in 2009. Not quite a year later I was told I also had fibromyalgia. I was a fairly new employee at Canada Post at the time and continued to work full time for another 12 years. I decided in December of 2022 that I needed to change my career. The assembly line type of work I was doing at Canada Post was causing my body a lot of strife.
Last year (Feb 2023) I decided to leave that job. My health was taking a toll from the strain of the work I did. I took a retirement package and purchased Creative Wanderings and was on my way to Saskatchewan by the end of September 2023.
My sister and I chose to take on Creative Wanderings when we were talking about our futures and my desire to leave my job and do something that wasn’t going to be so strenuous physically that we could enjoy and do together.
Fast forward to today. We decided over the holiday season that we wanted to take on a campaign that we felt strongly about. We discussed our top three and landed on Lupus Canada almost immediately. With both of us living with lupus as kids with our mother and now my diagnosis, we wanted to help bring more awareness and more support to those living with lupus.
Our soaps and body care products are made with sensitive skin in mind. The ingredients we use in our body care products are carefully chosen for their properties and abilities. We want to use the best ingredients to bring the best product for every skin type.
Our goal with this campaign is to help bring awareness and education for those living with lupus. To support lupus Canada’s mission and to make a financial contribution to lupus on world lupus day on May 10th 2024.
My personal goal is to bring all of my skills and passion for what I do to the table and maybe give some hope for others who live with this disease. Lupus has taken a lot from me although I feel it’s important to acknowledge those losses, I also feel it’s paramount to seek and promote the things it has not taken away. What I have gained through this journey are friends, knowledge, tenacity and confidence to still chase my dreams while living with lupus.
To learn more about this campaign please visit https://4a3c4bb9.myshopify.com/products/untitled-mar26_12-45.
