Foundations of Care Series: Volunteer Orientation & Community Workshop

About the Series

Foundations of Care is TEAO Canada’s new monthly orientation and education series open to both interested community members and new or prospective volunteers.

These 45-minute workshops explore the building blocks of trauma-responsive care, focusing on embodied practices, systemic awareness, and healing justice. Each session is grounded in real-world tools and relational approaches, shaped by lived experience and anti-oppressive values.

Whether you’re just beginning your learning journey or seeking to deepen your approach to care work, these sessions offer practical grounding and a welcoming space to connect, ask questions, and grow.

What You’ll Learn

• The differences between trauma-informed, trauma-sensitive, and trauma-responsive care
• The impact of systems on trauma and healing
• How TEAO integrates somatic care, mutual aid, and embodied equity into its programming
• What volunteering with TEAO looks like — and how to get involved

Who It’s For

• Curious community members
• Healing justice practitioners
• Prospective volunteers
• Those seeking education rooted in anti-oppressive, trauma-aware frameworks

No prior knowledge or experience required.

Monthly Topics

Each month brings a new focus rooted in TEAO’s model of trauma-responsive and systemic care. Upcoming sessions include:

• October: What Is Trauma-Responsive Care? How Is It Different from Trauma-Informed or Trauma-Sensitive Care?
• November: Mutual Aid & Systemic Impact Awareness
• December: What Trauma Teaches Us About Survival (and What It Doesn’t Teach Us About Safety)
• January: Embodied Equity: What It Means to Be Seen, Felt, and Heard in Systems That Erase Us
• February: Not All Triggers Are Bad: Listening to the Body Without Shame
• March: The Myth of Neutrality: How “Professionalism” Silences the Marginalized
• April: We Carry Memory in the Muscle: A Somatic Look at Intergenerational Trauma
• May: Rest Is a Form of Protest: Reclaiming Rest for System-Impacted Bodies
• June: When Boundaries Hurt: The Difference Between Control and Protection
• July: Safety Isn’t a State – It’s a Relationship

Orientation Component

Each session includes a 10–15 minute orientation for new volunteers. Learn about:

• TEAO’s values, approach, and offerings
• What support roles look like
• How to plug into trauma-responsive care work

Hosted by TEAO Canada
When: 4th Friday of every month (October 2025 – July 2026)
Time: 12:00 PM – 12:45 PM EST
Location: Online (Zoom link sent to registrants)
Cost: Free
Access Needs: Email info@teaocanada.com with accessibility requests.

This session is made possible through support from the Waterloo Region Community Foundation (WRCF).