Letter of reference for Jennifer Wolfe I have known Jennifer Wolfe since September of 1992 when she began studying at the Centre for Training in Psychotherapy, where I am a member of the faculty. My first direct contacts with her were as lecturer in psychotherapeutic theory, and more specifically, in a lengthy oral examination.

Three years ago Jennifer arranged to meet with me twice monthly for case supervision, an arrangement which is still ongoing.

Towards the end of that year I invited her to join a psychodynamic group to develop her grasp of certain issues we were discussing in supervision. She has also chosen to continue the group work up to the present time. It is worthy of note that when she began supervision with me and participation in group psychotherapy, she had already satisfied the CTP requirements for both, and in fact for most of this time has come to them as a graduate. Jennifer has given me permission to include in this letter whatever knowledge I have of her that seems appropriate and relevant. Regarding Jennifer's strengths and abilities: One is struck very early by her intelligence. Even among adults rich in accomplishment and life experience, she emerges as exceptionally bright. What particularly impresses me is the degree to which her mind is engaged: she is always at work trying to grasp and weigh what is in front of her, whether it's intellectual discourse, or reports of life experience, or interchanges that are occurring 'live' . Her intelligence seems to me exceptionally unremitting and intense, like a light searching into things.

She is unsparingly honest about herself and others. While her thoughtfulness is most often unvoiced, Jennifer loves good conversation. She

either enters into or helps create lively peer exchanges, in such forms as supervision seminars, discussion groups, and meetings in pubs. Her involvements range broad and deep: fiction, films, music, the outdoors. One wouldn't guess that she has lived at subsistence level for most of her student years. She is sought out by others because her presence makes such a difference. Jennifer was (too) early responsible for her two younger siblings, both boys. She has a very caring, affectionate way with people, like that of a big sister, a very youthful one. She became a mother early in life, raising two sons. She has a dignity about herself and in her dealings with others that along with these other qualities have won her a great deal of respect from her colleagues. Regarding Jennifer's limitations: I would say that I don't find characteristics in Jennifer I would describe as being in need of development to any marked degree. I will try to speak to this question by indicating what she is working hard at developing in her life, but they touch on difficulties that are not apparent except to those close to her.

Jennifer's childhood and adolescence were very difficult and marked by trauma. Her father was a brilliant university teacher, but he fell into psychotic episodes that tyrannized and even threatened his family's lives for many years. Jennifer was singled out both for his favour and his manic rantings. Her very young mother abandoned her to his overpowering attention.

Jennifer lived by her wits very early, honing her intuition, peace­making skills and hyper­vigilance. She also protected her younger brothers.

Years of constant fear and even terror as well as precocious responsibility take a toll. By her 20's, Jennifer's immune system was so compromised that she succumbed to a series of viral illness and fatigue. During this time she also had the care of two children. She was just coming out of this difficult period when she came to CTP. In the years since, she has worked consistently to solidify the recovery of her health, attending to self­care such as rest, nurturance, pacing and sane self­protectiveness. She's made real progress in this regard.

Jennifer is working also at another legacy from her traumatic home life. Her frontier has been to entrust herself to other people, to undo the scarcely conscious assumption that others neither can nor will want to help her with internal difficulties and that she will only de­stabilize others by bringing them forward. This has been very hard work, and in a sense she could continue to go far without undertaking it. I admire her for facing the anxiety that this deeper, truer and more inquiring communication entails. Regarding leadership and followership abilities: I have already referred to Jennifer's typical pattern of peer involvement to study and develop professionally. Her work with clients has been very creative in one so young. Her caseload is disproportionately filled with dysfunctional and marginal people leading lives of seemingly hopeless desperation, a population which many of our students could not have worked with. In fact as a faculty we have had to try to balance Jennifer's case load with less disturbed clients. For so long at the very edges of endurance herself, Jennifer's primary interest is in understanding how people experience their own lives, what meaning they see in it themselves. She is keenly interested in them and is in many ways so unconventional herself that she does not encumber the work with misplaced and dissonant therapeutic ambitions. She is very patient; her clients keep coming to their sessions. In supervision discussions she speaks of her clients with freshness and care, inquiringly­­they're her school. She sometimes writes papers to circulate amongst her supervisors and colleagues and is tireless at contributing to a good professional forum.

Jennifer is a self­starter. Her many years of juggling limited resources have made her ingenious, which showed from the onset of her supervised work in the ways she organized her workplace and sought out referrals.

I have not seen Jennifer in an actual position of leadership, I hope that these remarks speak to her ability to exercise it. Regarding the extent to which she is sensitive to diversity: My observations about her work address this question. Toronto is ethnically diverse to a marked degree. Though it has a ways to go, the CTP student population is ethnically and racially mixed. Certainly there is considerable diversity in age, religion and spirituality, gender and sexual orientation. Because of the emphasis on seminar work, study groups and especially the psychodynamic groups, the students educate each other to a profound degree. The emotional and experiential stretching that a committed therapy group affords is outstanding, given the personal disclosure of all of these diversities in a way that students recognize as privileged.

Jennifer has a notable ease and confidence with men whether they are colleagues, personal friends or psychotherapy clients, and gains the trust of many difficult, troubled men who seem to trust no one else.

Jennifer holds a spiritual life in high regard. It is my opinion that Jennifer would bring to the profession of social work and specifically to clinical social work practice her gifts and experience and a wholehearted dedication to learning. I recommend Jennifer without reservation. Sharon MacIsaac McKenna, Ph.D (416) 964­7919 January 3, 2002