Host Lisa Laronde speaks with Melissa Alexander, a floor-covering apprentice, peer worker, mentor, and activist. They explore what inspired her to enter the skilled trades, her experiences and challenges as a floor layer, and her role as a certified peer worker. Melissa also shares her advocacy efforts with organizations like 'Walls to Bridges.'
A significant part of Melissa's story is her commitment to second chances. Having served time herself, Melissa brings a unique perspective to her advocacy for inmates. She passionately believes in the power of rehabilitation and the importance of providing opportunities for former inmates to rebuild their lives. Through her work, she fights against the stigma associated with having a criminal record and highlights the need for systemic changes to support reintegration.
Melissa offers valuable advice for women entering the trades, discusses the urgent need for mental health resources, and underscores the importance of second chances and education while touching on how she balances work and her personal life, advocacy, and mentoring.
Melissa Alexander is a fourth-year apprentice with Local 27, specializing as a floor-covering installer. In addition to her apprenticeship, she is a certified peer worker involved in the Community Healing Project for Stella's Place and St. Stephen's Community House, where she supports youth. Melissa also works at Progress Place, a mental health rehabilitation center for adults.
She has participated in the TCBN Peer Mentor Program, where she successfully completed the program and mentored six mentees. Her role involved not only helping them choose their trade but also supporting them through their struggles and guiding them toward success. Melissa's goal is to continue growing and understanding herself while helping others persevere, no matter what life throws at them.
As an activist for women, Melissa completed her advanced course for floor covering installation on February 18, 2022. This achievement places her in the fifth term of her apprenticeship, with a year and a half remaining to complete her hours and qualify to write her Red Seal exam.
Melissa is also a recipient of the 2023 YWCA Toronto Women of Distinction award for her work with “Walls to Bridges," an educational program that brings incarcerated non-incarcerated students together to study post-secondary courses in jails and prisons across Canada.
Connect with Melissa on Linked In: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melissa-alexander-2962a8251/
