​"Everyone brings their own unique set of skills to a new job. Mine just happens to be handmade personalized cards and crafts. I love letting people know they matter to me." Meet Candice, a Technical Trainer at EPCOR who loves to make it personal.

When Candice sits down in her craft room, hundreds of supplies are within reach. From colour-­coded inks and paper punches to stamps of all shapes and sizes, each craft she creates can be as unique as the recipient.

"Did you actually make this?" is a common reaction from friends and colleagues. Listening to Candice speak about her art, it's clear that her paper creations are both handmade and heartfelt.
 
"I love personalizing things," she says, explaining how birthday cards are her favourite to make. "I get to pick something special to that person, whether it's adding butterflies to a card for a friend who loves them, or making one in the shape of a guitar for a musical colleague -­ it's very personal when you give someone a handmade card." Candice puts a little piece of herself into each one like her own little works of art.

While training new hires in the call center at EPCOR, the always-­energetic Candice caters her lessons in the same way as she creates her custom crafts. "New employees bring their own unique set of skills," she says, explaining how adult education differs from her background in elementary teaching. "You get to take the employee's personal experience and help build relationships and lessons based on that."

In the classroom, Candice is known to combine her love of crafts with the fun wit of puns. "Now that you're finished billing training," she said while handing out paper treat boxes at the end of one of her sessions, "it's a piece of cake!"

Candice's crafts get a room full of smiles and "it's a nice gesture for them to know that as a trainer, I want them to be successful" she says. "I started in the call center at EPCOR too, so I can understand where they're coming from. For some people, sitting in a classroom all day isn't the best, so I make sure to create lessons in all types of mediums."

Since starting her career at EPCOR four years ago, Candice continues to create and inspire. "I get to help people every day," she says. "Whether it's training, researching, or helping a colleague;; I love what I do and my crafts help me show that."

125 years of EPCOR providing more. Some of us have creative ways of showing it.