10 Years in Peterborough: Finding Home Through Community and Creativity
Ten years ago, I packed up my life and moved to Peterborough. I wasn’t chasing a job or following a dream…I was trying to survive.
When Jason died, I told my parents I’d move within the year. I had a solid job and wonderful friends in Mississauga (I still miss them), but the city had never quite felt like mine.
Ten months later, an invitation arrived—a chance to move to Peterborough—and I grabbed it with both hands.
I didn’t know then how much I would need this place.
What followed was one of the hardest seasons of my life. I fell into the deepest depression I’ve ever known. But slowly, through quiet acts of kindness, open doors, and unexpected opportunities, Peterborough pulled me back into the light.
And then something beautiful happened:
I started saying yes to things.
I volunteered for Artsweek and the Peterborough Folk Fest
I joined the City’s Accessibility Advisory Committee.
I became a Board Director at Five Counties Children’s Centre.
I got to know local organizations and changemakers through the community-based parts of my previous jobs.
I was invited to lead workshops at the public library and speak on author panels.
I hosted a workshop through Inspired Women for International Women’s Day.
And somewhere along the way, I stopped feeling like a visitor and started feeling like I belonged.
These experiences helped me meet new friends and collaborators. They reawakened parts of myself I hadn’t connected to in years: the parts that love stories, community, purpose, and creativity.
I’ve also been held by this community in ways I couldn’t have imagined:
Local media have supported my creative work, my books, exhibitions, and workshops.
Businesses like Watson & Lou, Take Cover Books, Silverbean, and B!KE have sold my products, made space for events, and always said yes to creativity.
Now, I can walk through downtown and run into friends on every corner. That never stops feeling like magic.
Ten years later, I can say this with clarity:
Peterborough gave me more than a place to live—it gave me a place to rebuild, to root, and to write.
As a writer, educator, and small business owner, I often talk about the power of stories and spaces to help us feel more connected, more seen, more ourselves. This city has been that kind of space for me.
And for that, I’m endlessly grateful.
To those building a life after loss, or searching for a creative community—hold on. Things can change. Belonging can come quietly, and creatively, and sometimes it looks nothing like you expected.
Has a place ever shaped your creative life in an unexpected way? I’d love to hear your story in the comments.
PS: To read the articles by local media, please head to my Media Page.
