WINNIPEG — A seven year old girl found a path for her future after a chance encounter with a clown in her hospital room.
When 23-year-old Manon Ottenbreit was just seven years old, she was very sick. After her mother took her to the hospital they did a C.A.T scan and realized she had an abscess. Realizing she needed brain surgery quickly to remove the abscess the size of an egg meant her life would change forever. But, she didn’t expect how it would change.
“I don’t remember being sick. I just remember laughing with my nurses and I remember that really great moment when the clown came to see me,” said Ottenbreit.
That simple visit from a clown, whom she realized was a Therapeutic Clown after, set the tone for the rest of her life’s journey.
She said that one magical moment has changed the course of how she’s decided to live her life.
“If I base my life on improving the quality of life of the people that surround me, I see that as being a clown everyday,” said Ottenbreit.
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Since meeting that clown back when she was seven years old, she has gone to clown comedy school in Montreal at Francine Cote. From there she has found herself involved in Clowns Without Borders where she’s been able to entertain kids on reserves up north and work with children in villages in Ecuador.
Ottenbreit credits her encounter with the clown in her hospital room when she was recovering for helping choose the right path for her future.
“You need the doctor to take care of your body, but you need the clown to take care of your mind, your soul,” said Ottenbreit.
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