President's Message

The Tapestry Continues — Three Coaches. A future of belonging for everyone

Dear ICF BC Member,

Last year, we gathered under the theme of Tapestry — the idea that our community is woven from many threads, each one distinct, each one necessary. No single thread makes a tapestry. It is the weaving together that creates something strong enough to last.

This year, I want to tell you about three coaches. They don't know each other yet. But I believe they need to.

Priya completed her coaching certification eight months ago. She is thoughtful, curious, and deeply committed to the clients she hasn't found yet. She works part-time at a community centre, volunteers her coaching hours, and carries a quiet fear she rarely names aloud: What if I don't belong in this profession? What if the door is open for everyone except me? She reads about credentialing pathways and feels overwhelmed. She attends virtual sessions alone and logs off before the networking starts, convinced the room is already full of people who have it figured out.

She is brilliant — she belongs. She just doesn't know it yet.

Randall built his coaching practice over 14 years. MCC. Executive coaching. A client list he is proud of and a waiting list that quietly exhausts him. He carries enormous wisdom, the kind that only comes from scoping hundreds of organizations and sitting with thousands of people through their hardest moments. But lately, he has started wondering if the profession is passing him by. AI. New credentialing standards. A changing economy. A field that feels noisier and less recognizable than the one he entered. He gives so much to his clients, and somewhere along the way, he stopped asking who gives to him.

He has so much to offer. He just hasn't found the right room to offer it in.

Daniella works in HR at a mid-size technology company. She is her team's unofficial coach, the person colleagues seek out when they need someone to truly listen. She has completed her ACC and uses coaching off the side of her desk every single day. Only no one in her organization recognizes her as a coach. In boardrooms, her approach is called "soft." In performance reviews, her instinct for empowering others is invisible. She wonders sometimes whether her passion for coaching will ever be seen as the professional asset it actually is.

She is already doing the work. She just hasn't been seen doing it.

Three coaches. Three different conflicts that no book, no webinar, no credential alone can resolve.

Priya doesn't need more content. She needs Randall to look her in the eye and say, I remember that feeling. You are in the right place. Randall doesn't need more clients. He needs Daniella to remind him that coaching inside organizations is the next frontier — and that his experience is exactly what coaches like her are hungry to learn from. Daniella doesn't need validation. She needs Priya's fresh eyes to help her see that what she does every day is remarkable, that the word "coach" belongs to her as fully as it belongs to anyone.

These three can't find each other online. You can't manufacture the moment when a stranger becomes a colleague, and a colleague becomes the reason you stayed in the profession.

That moment happens in a room.

What’s your story that your colleagues need to hear?

This is what Tapestry means to me. Not an idea. Not a theme on a slide. It is the active, daily work of weaving a community where Priya is welcomed before she feels ready, where Randall's wisdom is honoured and sought out, where Daniella's coaching is recognized as leadership — regardless of what the org chart says.

The coaching profession is changing faster than any of us predicted. The 2026 ICF Coaching Futures Report indicates that collaborative ecosystems, artificial intelligence, cultural intelligence, and trust in expertise are reshaping what coaching is and whom it serves. That future will either be built with the full diversity of our community, every background, every coaching context, every career stage — or without us. I know which one I am choosing.

On November 15, I hope you will choose it with me.

Come as you are. Bring the question you've been afraid to ask. Bring the experience you've been hesitant to share. Bring your whole professional self — the credentials and the doubts, the mastery and the uncertainty — because this community needs all of it.

Every thread matters. Every voice belongs. Together, we are the tapestry.

We will save you a seat. We always do!

With deep gratitude and genuine excitement for what we will build together,

Jonathan Evans
President, ICF British Columbia Chapter

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Spotlight Event

Coaching Corners Bring the Power of Coaching to MOSAIC BC

What can happen in a short coaching conversation? Sometimes, quite a lot.

ICF BC was delighted to bring our Coaching Corners to MOSAIC BC’s Fast Track to Your Future – Speed Interviewing event offering participants an opportunity to experience professional coaching alongside an event designed to help job seekers strengthen their connections, confidence and career prospects.

The event brought together job seekers and employers for a fast-paced series of conversations and interviews. Amid that energy, the Coaching Corners provided participants with a different kind of conversation: a chance to reflect, regroup and focus on what they wanted to communicate about themselves and their potential.

Our volunteer ICF coaches offered brief, focused coaching conversations throughout the event. Participants arrived with different questions and challenges—some wanting greater clarity, others looking to build confidence, shift their perspective or think through their next step. While the conversations were short, they demonstrated something we know well within the coaching profession: meaningful insight does not always require a lengthy engagement. A powerful question, attentive listening and a few minutes of focused reflection can create valuable momentum.

Initiatives like Coaching Corners are also an important part of ICF BC’s commitment to building bridges between professional coaches, organizations and the broader community. They allow people who may never have experienced coaching to discover firsthand what coaching feels like—and how different it can be from advice, mentoring or consulting.

Most importantly, this initiative was made possible by the generosity of our ICF BC coaching community.

A heartfelt thank you to Carolina Rivera, Charles Schnieder, Elena Giorgetti, Jillian White, Julia James, and Lily Gu who volunteered their time and talent to support participants at the event. Your warmth, curiosity and commitment helped create a welcoming space for people navigating an important moment in their professional lives.

If you are a part of a professional association or a large (or small) organization that would like to add value to participants of a conference or meeting through Coaching Corners, please reach out to Ashli Komaryk at [email protected] and we’ll be happy to explore possibilities!

Lily Gu, Ashli Komaryk, Charles Schneider

Ashli Komaryk, Carolina Rivera, Jatinder Dhir, Jonathan Evans

Julia James, Jillian White, Elena Giorgetti, Charles Schnieder, Lily Gu, Ashli Komaryk, Sara Saebi, Carolina Rivera

Thank you as well to MOSAIC BC for inviting ICF BC to be part of Fast Track to Your Future. Collaborations like this help us extend the reach and impact of professional coaching across British Columbia—one conversation at a time.

Join Us: Coaching Conference & AGM

Saturday, November 15, 2026 | 12:30 p.m. – 5 p.m. PDT
UBC Robson Square, 800 Robson St., Vancouver, BC V6Z 3B7
Online attendance also available

This year's conference is built around the questions our profession can no longer postpone. Olivier Malafronte opens with AI Coaching: What Coaches Need to Know, a grounded, evidence-informed conversation about what artificial intelligence can and cannot do — and how we lead from a place of knowledge rather than fear. Indy Bath follows with Beyond Cultural Intelligence: The Systems Mindset Continuum, an interactive session that moves coaches from cultural awareness into a deeper understanding of power, systems, and the complexity our clients live inside every day.

Between sessions, do the thing no report can do for you. Talk to the coach beside you. Ask the question you've been sitting on. Find the person who has already walked the road you're standing at the beginning of.

Our Annual General Meeting follows, where we set direction together as a chapter. And after that, stay for the coaches' social. Bring a card. Leave with a connection that lasts longer than the evening.

Whether you join us in the room on Robson Street or from your screen across the province, be there. This is where the next thread of our tapestry gets woven.

 Register Now 

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Calendar of Events

Coaches & Coffee: Langford

October 15 | 6:30 - 8:30 PM | Serious Coffee

Keep the Momentum Going on the Island! We’re gathering again in Langford for another energizing Coaches & Coffee session! It’s a fantastic opportunity to connect with fellow coaches, share insights, and grow together in a relaxed and friendly space. Hosted by Paul Lamoureux, come join us for a meaningful and inspiring meetup.

Being with Change: Navigating Transition as a Space of Becoming

October 19 | 4:00 - 5:30 PM | Online

What happens when the future feels uncertain and the ways we’ve relied on in the past no longer work? Join Adonica Sweet, MCC, CEC, and Lucy Faulconer, PCC, for an interactive session exploring how the Being Framework can help us navigate change with greater adaptability and awareness. Through reflection and conversation, discover how our relationship with uncertainty shapes the possibilities we see and the choices we make. Explore transition not simply as something to manage, but as a space for becoming.

Coaches & Coffee: Kelowna

October 20 | 4:30 - 6:30 PM | Moxies Restaurant

A relaxed and welcoming space to connect with fellow coaches, share insights, and grow together. Hosted by the wonderful Rebecca Garland. Bring your curiosity, your voice, and your presence, meaningful conversations start with us.  We look forward to seeing you, one cup at a time.

Coaches & Coffee: Richmond

October 22 | 9:15 - 10:15 AM | Waves Coffee

We’re delighted to continue our monthly Coaches & Coffee gatherings in Richmond and to welcome our facilitator, Leo Wu, who will be hosting this session and creating space for meaningful connection and conversation. Join us for rich dialogue, community, and a welcoming environment to meet fellow coaches, exchange ideas, and continue growing together in the coaching profession.

Coaches & Coffee: North Vancouver

October 22 | 5:00 - 6:30 PM | Cafe Artigiano

It’s a fantastic opportunity to connect with fellow coaches, share insights, and grow together in a relaxed and friendly space. Hosted by our Membership Director Anna Boltenko - come join us for a meaningful and inspiring meetup.

Coaches & Coffee: Vancouver

October 27 | 4:30 - 6:30 PM | Blenz Cafe

Bring your curiosity, your voice, and your presence - meaningful conversations grow when we come together. This Coaches & Coffee Meet-Up will be hosted by Lorne Prupas with the topic:  Why, When, and How to Incorporate Symbols and Rituals into Your Coaching Practice. We look forward to seeing you there, one cup and one conversation at a time. 

View more upcoming events here!

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Chapter News

Your Chapter Needs You

Every board seat currently held was once open, waiting for someone to say yes.

Board nominations opened on August 15, 2026. 

Review board role descriptions at icfbc.ca/ICFBC_Board_Job_Descriptions and submit your application via Google Form at forms.gle/DDnuF5YmvGFRbFex6. Questions? Reach us at [email protected] — we are glad to help you find the right fit.

Leadership is not a title. It is a decision to show this community what becomes possible when someone steps forward.

 Apply Now 

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Global Updates

Global ICF Updates

Renewing your credentials this year? ICF has updated its competencies, credentialing standards, and pathways across ACC, PCC, MCC, ACTC, Mentor Coaching, and Supervising. The free ICF Credentialing Webinar Series walks you through every stage — from first application to renewal — with on-demand access whenever you need it.

Access the Free Credentialing Webinar Series

Did you know? Our very own ICF BC Membership Director, Anna Boltenko, will be presenting at ICF Converge 2026 in Washington, D.C., October 28–30. It is a proud moment for our entire community, and a reflection of the calibre of coaching we have built here in British Columbia.

Learn More About ICF Converge 2026

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