Clara Hughes Brings Message of Hope, Healing and Community to Hope in the City Winnipeg
Before she became an Olympic champion, bestselling author and one of Canada’s most respected advocates for mental health, Clara Hughes was a student growing up in Winnipeg’s Elmwood neighbourhood. The lessons she learned there, from supportive teachers, strong community connections and Prairie values, helped shape a journey that would take her to Olympic podiums and, ultimately, to a deeper understanding of resilience, healing and personal transformation.
Hughes will share that journey at The Salvation Army’s Hope in the City luncheon on Wednesday, November 18, at CanadInns Polo Park, where she will speak about movement as medicine and the powerful role community plays in overcoming life’s challenges.
“There’s a beautiful transition and transformation that can happen when a person makes the choice to move,” says Hughes. “That was definitely a part of my path and my journey, to actually be present when I’m in motion.”
A six-time Olympic medalist, author and mental health advocate, Hughes recently released her second memoir, Learning to Breathe. While her first book focused largely on mental health and childhood trauma, this latest work explores healing through movement, creativity, nature, and meaningful relationships. Written over two years, the book chronicles both outward adventures on hiking trails across North America and an inward journey of self-discovery.
“It’s about inward and outward journeys, a returning to self and finding a place of love in this season of life,” she says. “And community, it’s all about community and how we don’t do anything alone; relational healing.”
In Learning to Breathe, Hughes reflects on the many people who supported her journey, including teachers from her Elmwood school days. She specifically credits her art teacher, Mr. Stevens, with encouraging the creativity that would later help her tell her story.”
“My roots will be forever planted in the prairie soils of Winnipeg,” says Hughes. “I’ll always be an Elmwood kid, an NK kid. And Winnipeg is a place that makes me always feel so proud and connected. There’s so much kindness, there’s so much acceptance, and there’s also so much diversity of cultures, of people, of deep connection with the rivers, of the trees, of the big skies, even the mosquitoes. I’ve lived all over North America, but I’ll always be a Winnipegger and a Manitoban at heart.”
Today, Hughes hopes her story will encourage others to embrace change and seek support when they need it.
“So many of us are carrying a metaphorical backpack on our back that can be filled with boulders that we’ve been carrying around our whole life,” she says. “I hope that people can realize that transition and transformation is possible in any season of life.”
Those themes align closely with The Salvation Army’s work of building community and providing practical support to people facing hardship. Hughes says her experiences with the organization have left a lasting impression.
“I’ve always had massive respect for the Salvation Army and all the work that they do, not just in Winnipeg, but in all the cities that I go to, that I travel in, that I walk through. Often when I walk by the buildings, I know that this is a place of community,” she says. “That’s been the richest, deepest feeling I’ve had when I’ve seen all the people there receiving support.”
As a proud Winnipegger and one of Canada’s most inspiring voices, Clara Hughes will offer more than a keynote speech. She will share a powerful reminder that hope, healing and transformation are possible, and that communities, mentors, and meaningful connections can change lives. Reserve your seat today and be part of an afternoon that promises to inspire, uplift and make a lasting impact. Visit HopeWinnipeg.ca for tickets and event details.
