Living your dream

At first glance, Justine seems like a young woman like any other: with her youth firmly attached to her back, she rides a bike, skis or goes on a trip around the world. She is beautiful as a picture, she loves her life. Except that barely a year ago, she was diagnosed with Guillain-Barré syndrome which left her temporarily paralyzed in the legs and one side of her face. "It set my mind straight!" she announces without a trace of bitterness in her voice. Juju is a fighter. It takes more than that to scrape her morale, as evidenced by the impromptu morning dances in the hospital corridors and the water gun fights with her roommate .

It must be said that the young thirty-something has a dream. "And the time to make it come true, before life decides otherwise, is now." Animals have always fascinated her and her relationship with them is special. But the way to integrate them into her life path remained unclear. "Veterinary medicine interested me, but I wasn't sure. I was searching for myself. So I went on a trip. I had the chance to work in a veterinary clinic, but it left me wanting more; I realized that we didn't really connect with the animals we were treating. Then I did an internship at a school in Cambodia. Contact with young people was innate for me, it was magical." The lights went on: Justine was going to combine education, young people and her passion for animals.

Helping young people

Justine has embarked on the path of special education, school adaptation, and animal therapy, "all at the same time"! She also worked in social pediatrics with Dr. Julien's foundation. Having become a teacher and special education therapist in secondary schools, Justine felt her academic motivation decline drastically a few months ago: "The needs are clearly there. It's certain that all the changes that young people have experienced in connection with the pandemic have worsened the delays that already existed, and that distress is present; motivation has also taken a hit."

Having had the opportunity to take her dog outside during physical education classes, on special permission, she was able to see the difference that Benji could make, especially with unruly or struggling students. “My dog would go straight to them. It was a good test to confirm what I wanted to do.”

Justine knows that access to specialized support services for young people is a challenge. And for the public, the waiting time is long. The possibility of a private service exists, "but if the parents are unable to travel to a location after school, the children do not have access to the service. And at home, the little brother can be a nuisance, the sister has allergies, the parents are not comfortable with a dog at home... We cannot work properly. How can I offer my services to young people in an accessible and suitable environment? While waiting to find the solution, I have become involved in schools, but the idea of the bus has been running through my head for a while. Today, I am putting it into practice."

The Benji Bus

“The bus is a mobile, flexible and safe environment: it is the best way to make my services available without limits or conditions. I have developed a business model that allows me to pick up the young person from school and take them to their parents' office when we have finished, to their home or to join them skiing if they want. My rates work according to mileage, from a certain distance.”

With her four-legged accomplice, the companion listens to teenagers and school-age children, from about five to fifteen years old. Justine is at the heart of this helping relationship that is experienced by three people: she navigates with open arms between her role as a special education teacher and the contact she establishes between the student and the animal. She will thus be able to count on a window, an opening in all simplicity, to intervene in school learning, whether it is help with reading, specific catch-up or personalized rehabilitation, preparation for an exam, behavior adjustment or the passage of a stressful stage. A climate of trust is naturally established and bonds of affection are woven between the child, Justine and the border collie. The dog encourages self-esteem and fills the need for validation, so crucial for healthy development.

Of course, Justine is only just starting out in entrepreneurship. She is surrounded by friends and family who give her a helping hand. One is self-employed, another is an accountant, and another is a lawyer. Together, they helped her establish her business plan, her sales pitch, and her financial planning. Soon, she will be diving into the maze of grants to ensure the stability and even growth of her business. One thing is for sure: we already know that they will be needed everywhere throughout the province of Benji Bus!