Tetra Society - Helping the Disabled live better!

Our club's Past-President, Mark Ewer is an active Volunteer with the Tetra Sociiety of North America.  Tetra buiilds innovative solutions for people with physical disabilites to overcome environmental barriers, providing greater independence, quality of life and inclusion.

Tetra has 40 chapters across North America with 10 in Ontario. Each chapter has a number of volunteers able to take on client requests.

Most Tetra volunteers have an engineering or "Maker" background; Mark as a former professional social worker and Executive Director/Administrator, claims "inventor genes" in his grandfather and father led to his interest in making devices to support the disabled.

A former award winner with the March of Dimes Canada DesignAbility Program, Mark switched to Tetra when that former program folded.  He has now volunteered for Tetra for 2 years, using a home workshop to fabricate items as needed.

Speaker Bio
Mark Ewer is a McMaster grad ('71) and received his Master of Social Work degree from Sir Wilfred Laurier Univrsity in 1973.  Mark's first career involved 30 years in Chilld Welfare, rising to the position of Executive Director at the age of 30 and serving in that postion in Norfolk and Haldimand Counties and at the Catholic Children's Aid Society of Hamilton where he took early retirement after 18 years.  He then switched to the field of Long Term Care and worked an additional 10 years as Administrator in 3 local LTC homes until finally retiring at the age of 66.

For over 30 years Mark has volunteered to support the needs of the disabled.  In 2018 he was awarded the Judge George Ferguson Award by March of Dimes Canada for contributing in an outstanding way to enabling "equality and full participation for people with disabilies".  September 15, 2023 he was awarded the "David C Onley Award for Leadership in Accessability", which was presented to him in Toronto by Ontrio's Lieutenant Governor, Elizabeth Dowdeswell.

Mark and Mary Anne Ewer have been married for 55 years and live in Hamilton's West Mountain area. They are proud of their two adult sons, Paul and Michael and have 3 delightful grandchildren, Connor, Cali and Maverick.