by Ilana Belfer
Arlene Fels is widely admired for her perseverance, generosity and positive spirit. Born with cerebral palsy, she has met life’s challenges with determination and quiet strength — building a life defined not by limitation, but by contribution.
For nearly two decades, Arlene worked at Agence Ometz, rising from volunteer to administrative support staff. Now retired, she continues to give back by funding The Arlene Fels Work Experience, an Ometz program that helps people living with disabilities find meaningful employment.
Her commitment extends well beyond Ometz. Arlene supports many of the institutions that have shaped her journey, including the Jewish General Hospital, the MAB-Mackay and Miriam Foundations, the Cummings Centre and Temple Emanu-El-Beth Sholom. Together with her family, she helped establish the Fels Family Arts & Friendship Program at Concordia University, which uses the arts to foster connection and belonging. She has also played an important role in advancing inclusion at Federation CJA, supporting initiatives such as JDAIM microgrants and tools that help organizations make their websites more accessible.
Arlene’s gifts to Alink are helping to establish a training program for educators who support participants in our housing and housing readiness initiatives — an investment that strengthens not only our programs, but the people at the centre of them.
Naming Alink’s first Housing POD in her honour is a fitting tribute to someone whose life reflects the values that ground our work: inclusion, opportunity and community.
