Ambassadors: Featured Posts

The holidays are one of the most emotionally charged times of the year. There is joy, but there can also be pressure. The pressure to give, to host, to travel and to make everything feel “just right”. For many Canadians, that pressure is compounded by rising living costs and the strain of stretching every dollar a little further.

Financial literacy isn’t just about understanding numbers; it’s about confidence, control, and choice. And today, more than ever, older Canadian women are facing a unique set of financial challenges that make these skills essential. From longer lifespans to rising costs of living, and from pension changes to major life transitions, women 55+ deserve the tools, language, and support to navigate their financial futures with clarity.

A cottage is more than wood and water. It’s a shared rhythm, one that lets us slow down and rediscover one another. But it isn’t always easy, and there are times when you have to do the heavy lifting for the family. You have to be ok with that. I often refer to this as my ROI – return on investment, and the payout is enormous.

As we draw closer to the end of the year, I find myself thinking more often about the future. Not in a far-off, abstract way, but in the very practical sense that comes with aging: How long can I stay in my home? What will it take to manage well, to feel safe, and to continue living in a place that brings me comfort? These questions drift through my mind more frequently now, surfacing whenever I’m out walking or even just making tea.

We met in our twenties, when the world was still new and full of promise. It was 1970, and I had just moved to Ottawa to attend Carleton University. Back then, we were hungry for change, arguing about politics, literature, and justice until closing time at Chinese restaurants on Somerset Street in Ottawa. We believed our generation could fix the world. Now, more than fifty years later, the world looks very different—but the six of us are still here, still talking, still laughing, still believing, in our own quieter way.

Fast forward to today, and my iPhone seems to run my life rather than the other way around. Hours slip away as I scroll, read, and delete emails. “It’s necessary,” I tell myself, “What if I miss something important?” With the ongoing mail strike, the phone feels even more essential—what if a bill doesn’t arrive, or a payment is overlooked? The “what ifs” pile up quickly, each one pulling me deeper into my screen.

When HomeEquity Bank approached me four years ago to be their spokesperson, I did a lot of research into the company. My reputation and personal integrity are important to me. I didn’t just want to be a face and a name. I wanted to believe in what I was endorsing.

Kurt Browning, a Canadian figure skater and the celebrity spokesperson for HomeEquity Bank, partners with his dog to describe the benefits of a CHIP Reverse Mortgage and how it can help you retire in the home you love.

Kurt Browning, a Canadian figure skater and the celebrity spokesperson for HomeEquity Bank returns to tell you more about the CHIP Reverse Mortgage.

Training for an Ironman at age 70 was hard, one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. But it was also one of the greatest things I’ve ever done because it was life changing.

It was a transformative journey that went way beyond the realms of physical fitness. It required me to get healthy again, push beyond self-imposed age limitations, discover untapped potential, and gain profound insights about what is possible.

What do you want your 80-year-old future self to be doing in 10 years’ time? What do you want your 80-year-old future self to look like? What purpose and meaning do you want to have in your life? I’m in the process of transforming from an over-weight 70-year-old into an active, ageless athlete.

Not long ago, scientists, doctors, and elite runners thought it was impossible for a human being to break the 4-minute-mile barrier. Until a dreamer by the name of Roger Bannister came along one day. He trained hard and succeeded in breaking through the 4-minute barrier. People have been conditioned to believe that when they reach age 65 or 70, life is over, and they need to retire and rest for the rest of their lives. An artificial age barrier was created and accepted by everyone until some Retirement Rebels showed up. Like Bannister, they weren’t willing to accept the existence of this artificial age barrier and decided to challenge it.