Loren Kousaie

“I didn’t have a lot of experience with underserved communities in Canada before, but it seemed to be an area needing more attention than it’s getting in this country, so I thought I’d dip my toe in and see if it’s something that works for me,” Loren Kousaie said.

Loren has been an integral part of ACCESS since joining us as a volunteer in 2023. Initially drawn to facilitating for the Women’s Business Accelerator Program, Loren’s journey with us has been a dynamic and everchanging one, one where he embraces new opportunities as they arise.

“I’ve found that my philosophy has become to kind of say, ‘Yes, I think I’d be interested in that’ whenever a new need or opportunity comes up,  and as it turns out, there are lots of different ways to help at ACCESS,” Loren said. His willingness to say yes to opportunities demonstrates not only his dedication to supporting the community that we serve 

but it reflects ACCESS’ goal of saying yes to our Clients who come to us looking for support.

Loren’s decision to volunteer with ACCESS stemmed from his desire to seek meaningful avenues to make an impact after transitioning away from his professional career. Serendipitously, Loren stumbled upon ACCESS, recognizing the opportunity to bring his professional background to assist newcomers to Canada.

“When I first got involved, I thought, ‘I’m going share my experience to help people who want to be entrepreneurs but have no idea how to get started’, but what I wasn’t expecting was just how much more I would be learning from them,” Loren said. “It’s an awesome experience to be part of for eight weeks and sometimes beyond.”