ANNUAL REPORT 2025 / 2026
Finding Her
An ‘02 physical therapy graduate from the 
University of Alberta, Hoff wears many hats: a 
wife, a mother of four, a writer, an advocate, 
and a volunteer. She is also someone who 
knows firsthand what it means to find your 
voice. 
What many don’t know is that Hoff uses an 
augmentative and alternative communication 
(AAC) device to speak. Much like a touchpad 
with a keyboard, her device translates text into 
spoken words. The voice may sound “robotic,” as 
she describes it, but it’s steady and clear. Listen a 
little longer, and you’ll realize that voice is her. 
Today, Hoff is an active member of her 
community. But there was a time when 
communicating meant writing out conversations 
by hand, page after page, and carrying 
notebooks and scraps of paper wherever she 
went.
Years earlier, in the early 2000s, while 
completing a physiotherapy student placement 
at the Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital, Hoff 
had visited the I CAN Centre for Assistive 
Technology. She remembers being fascinated 
by the emerging technologies she saw there — 
tools that were helping people find new ways to 
communicate, connect, and participate. 
She had no idea then that she would one day rely 
on those same technologies herself.
“I was voiceless,” she says. For years, 
communication had become a daily exercise in 
patience and preparation. Every conversation 
required planning. Every interaction took time. 
And while communication was possible, it was 
limiting and often deeply isolating. Eventually, 
Hoff wondered if the I CAN Centre could help her. 
Eighteen long months later, the call finally came. 
Everything changed. 
“That day was the very beginning of a 
revolution not just in my communication 
abilities, but in my ability to live my life,” 
she says. “That’s because communication 
isn’t done in a vacuum — it’s a doorway 
that opens up the ability for a person to 
live their life well on their own terms.” 
With the support and expertise of the I CAN 
Centre, Hoff found not just a device, but a system 
designed around her life, goals, and identity. 
Her clinicians worked alongside her, making 
sure the technology fit seamlessly into her daily 
routines and aspirations. And what followed was 
more than the ability to speak; AAC gave Hoff 
access to relationships, contribution, and choice. 
Voice
For Jenna Hoff, communication has never been about 
just speaking. It’s about participating, connecting, and 
being part of the moments that matter. 

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