Successful People From Our Neighborhood - Dr. Grace Mankowski, Chiropractor
Please, welcome Dr. Grace Mankowski, Chiropractor, co-owner and co-founder of Signature Rehabilitation Clinic, located at 3823 Lakeshore Blvd West, Suite 5, Toronto, ON. Dr. Grace and her brother Dr. Alex Mankowski, opened the door of their clinic 13 years ago and ever since were helping people of the Long Branch and all over GTA. Dr. Alex is also chiropractor. The clinic also offers services of massage therapy, reflexology, acupuncture, herbology and aroma therapy.
Dr. Grace Mankowski
Dr. Grace, what is your background?
My brother and I were born in Canada; our parents are originally from Poland. My Mom came to Canada when she was 18, my father came when he was in his 30s, they met here.
What was your dream as a child and did it come true?
First I wanted to be a chemist. I liked it at first but I became bored always working alone.
How did you become a chiropractor?
I took my brother to the career center at the University of Toronto, he was in high school at the time and was not sure what profession he wanted to pursue. He looked at the chiropractic and said: “This is what I am going to do!” I thought: “You gotta be kidding me!” Even though my brother is younger, he made a decision first. Initially I was taking him for interviews that he wanted to have with various chiropractors. This is not something everyone would do but my brother said: “Well, if I am going to do this for the rest of my life, I’d better know all the “ins” and “outs”. He was so passionate about his career as a chiropractor that at the end he convinced me to do the same thing.
Dr. Alex Mankowski
Did you go to the same school?
Yes, we went to the same school, I was one year ahead of him.
What was Dr. Alex’s dream then?
He always wanted to work with athletes.
What was your first job?
I was a Professor at Seneca College. I was teaching English, Business and Academic probation.
What was your worst job?
When I was 15, I went to all-girls school and the nuns asked me to help with the handicapped retreat. And when you are 15, you look at things differently and it was a very challenging job. I realized how much I learned and how beautiful they were on the inside and it really gave me the fire to help people in the future.
What is the most challenging part about your work here, at the clinic?
The most challenging part is giving advice to your patients and knowing that they are not following through. My biggest concern is misperception of chiropractic, as the public is still not educated enough about it. People are always saying to me: “Once you go to the chiropractor - you have to go for the rest of your life”. My response to this is always the same: “People take care of their teeth and maintain them, so why wouldn’t you do the same for your spine? The spinal column encases the nervous system that feeds all your organs, glands and skin.
Do you recommend exercise to your patients?
Yes, we always emphasize the importance of exercise. It is important to have a strong back and core muscles, especially if you work hard physically.
How about office workers, who sitting all day, what challenges do they have?
The problem is that most people don’t do anything to exercise their back and strengthen it. For the people with office jobs I would recommend yoga, stretching, Pilates or Swiss ball exercises.
What do you enjoy the most about your job?
The satisfaction of helping people with my own hands.
What is success for you, Dr. Grace?
My biggest satisfaction is helping patients who have health concerns and watching them get better and leave our clinic smiling. I am also writing a book about nutrition and toxicity in the human body.
Signature Rehabilitation Clinic, 3823 Lakeshore Blvd West, Suite 5, Toronto, ON
View Larger Map
What is your book about?
Basically clinical nutrition, the food supply, how it could be good or toxic, how people sometimes make the wrong food choices, the water we drink and genetically modified foods.
Do you have hobbies?
Yes, I do! I really love to paint and draw. I won a scholarship to the Ontario College of Arts that I never pursued. I love dancing and I used to be with a professional dance company when I was younger, travelling all over the world. I also love learning about herbs. Last year I went and learned with a medicine woman from the native culture, just to learn more about herbs from a different practical perspective. I am always trying to upgrade my knowledge from different stand points. Someone asked me: “Why would you go to a medicine woman? They are not even formally educated”. But I think there is a lot of value in the traditions and what is passed down from generation to generation. I never give up the opportunity to learn no matter what the source is.
Do you like to travel and where would you like to go?
I love to travel and my favorite places are California and Switzerland. I would love to go to Egypt, Tibet and Bora Bora.
Are there any countries that you went to before and you really loved?
When I travelled with my dance company , we would go to various countries and found it fascinating because I would always go and talk to the people and learned about their culture. There is so much wisdom to learn from talking to them and finding out about the way they live.
Do you have a funny story you would like to share?
When my brother and I were younger we were always trying to get each other in trouble and now we work together every day and get along very well.
What is home for you?
Where my family is!
Do you have a professional message you would like to share?
Firstly, I think everyone should take responsibility for their own health. Do not ignore warning signs or pain. Pay attention to what types of food and water you put into the body. Consume foods that do not cause inflammation in your body. Watch your acid and toxicity levels. Get your spine checked by a local chiropractor and don’t forget about your children.
Dr. Grace, how about the most recent addition in your team, Dr. Allan Jamieson?
Dr. Allan is an acupuncturist; he is also well versed in traditional native medicine and practices herbology. He can diagnose by looking at the tongue, the nails and the eyes. He will be holding a seminar on common herbs that can be found in Canada and their purposes. He will also teach smudging. The seminar will be held on Saturday, October 19, 2013 and the cost to attend will be $15.00 and will include light snacks and refreshments. Please, see attached flyer for details and RSVP as the seats are limited.
Click to enlarge
Download flyer for event (pdf)
All photographs - compliments of Dr. Grace Mankowski and Dr. Alex Mankowski
Story - Compliments of Marina Gavrylyuk
Real Estate Agent with Sutton Group Summit Realty
MarinaG.ca
More Success Stories:
Bill Zufelt - Director and Founder of Sherway Music Academy
Alejandro and Renata Pereira - Taekwondo Instructors
Dmitry Dovnar - IT-professional
Andrew Heron, Sign Market - Business Owner
Erika-Leigh Howard (Stirton) - Rhythmic Gymnast
Chris Chapin, Vice President at Mutual Transportation
Danuta Smiehowski - Head Coach of Olympium Rhythmic Gymnastics Club
Lisa D'Avino - Mortgage Broker
Matin Saliev - Chef
Yevgen Aleksyeyenko - Truck Driver, Owner Operator
Successful people
Dr. Grace Mankowski
Dr. Grace, what is your background?
My brother and I were born in Canada; our parents are originally from Poland. My Mom came to Canada when she was 18, my father came when he was in his 30s, they met here.
What was your dream as a child and did it come true?
First I wanted to be a chemist. I liked it at first but I became bored always working alone.
How did you become a chiropractor?
I took my brother to the career center at the University of Toronto, he was in high school at the time and was not sure what profession he wanted to pursue. He looked at the chiropractic and said: “This is what I am going to do!” I thought: “You gotta be kidding me!” Even though my brother is younger, he made a decision first. Initially I was taking him for interviews that he wanted to have with various chiropractors. This is not something everyone would do but my brother said: “Well, if I am going to do this for the rest of my life, I’d better know all the “ins” and “outs”. He was so passionate about his career as a chiropractor that at the end he convinced me to do the same thing.
Dr. Alex Mankowski
Did you go to the same school?
Yes, we went to the same school, I was one year ahead of him.
What was Dr. Alex’s dream then?
He always wanted to work with athletes.
What was your first job?
I was a Professor at Seneca College. I was teaching English, Business and Academic probation.
What was your worst job?
When I was 15, I went to all-girls school and the nuns asked me to help with the handicapped retreat. And when you are 15, you look at things differently and it was a very challenging job. I realized how much I learned and how beautiful they were on the inside and it really gave me the fire to help people in the future.
What is the most challenging part about your work here, at the clinic?
The most challenging part is giving advice to your patients and knowing that they are not following through. My biggest concern is misperception of chiropractic, as the public is still not educated enough about it. People are always saying to me: “Once you go to the chiropractor - you have to go for the rest of your life”. My response to this is always the same: “People take care of their teeth and maintain them, so why wouldn’t you do the same for your spine? The spinal column encases the nervous system that feeds all your organs, glands and skin.
Do you recommend exercise to your patients?
Yes, we always emphasize the importance of exercise. It is important to have a strong back and core muscles, especially if you work hard physically.
How about office workers, who sitting all day, what challenges do they have?
The problem is that most people don’t do anything to exercise their back and strengthen it. For the people with office jobs I would recommend yoga, stretching, Pilates or Swiss ball exercises.
What do you enjoy the most about your job?
The satisfaction of helping people with my own hands.
What is success for you, Dr. Grace?
My biggest satisfaction is helping patients who have health concerns and watching them get better and leave our clinic smiling. I am also writing a book about nutrition and toxicity in the human body.
Signature Rehabilitation Clinic, 3823 Lakeshore Blvd West, Suite 5, Toronto, ON
View Larger Map
What is your book about?
Basically clinical nutrition, the food supply, how it could be good or toxic, how people sometimes make the wrong food choices, the water we drink and genetically modified foods.
Do you have hobbies?
Yes, I do! I really love to paint and draw. I won a scholarship to the Ontario College of Arts that I never pursued. I love dancing and I used to be with a professional dance company when I was younger, travelling all over the world. I also love learning about herbs. Last year I went and learned with a medicine woman from the native culture, just to learn more about herbs from a different practical perspective. I am always trying to upgrade my knowledge from different stand points. Someone asked me: “Why would you go to a medicine woman? They are not even formally educated”. But I think there is a lot of value in the traditions and what is passed down from generation to generation. I never give up the opportunity to learn no matter what the source is.
Do you like to travel and where would you like to go?
I love to travel and my favorite places are California and Switzerland. I would love to go to Egypt, Tibet and Bora Bora.
Are there any countries that you went to before and you really loved?
When I travelled with my dance company , we would go to various countries and found it fascinating because I would always go and talk to the people and learned about their culture. There is so much wisdom to learn from talking to them and finding out about the way they live.
Do you have a funny story you would like to share?
When my brother and I were younger we were always trying to get each other in trouble and now we work together every day and get along very well.
What is home for you?
Where my family is!
Do you have a professional message you would like to share?
Firstly, I think everyone should take responsibility for their own health. Do not ignore warning signs or pain. Pay attention to what types of food and water you put into the body. Consume foods that do not cause inflammation in your body. Watch your acid and toxicity levels. Get your spine checked by a local chiropractor and don’t forget about your children.
Dr. Grace, how about the most recent addition in your team, Dr. Allan Jamieson?
Dr. Allan is an acupuncturist; he is also well versed in traditional native medicine and practices herbology. He can diagnose by looking at the tongue, the nails and the eyes. He will be holding a seminar on common herbs that can be found in Canada and their purposes. He will also teach smudging. The seminar will be held on Saturday, October 19, 2013 and the cost to attend will be $15.00 and will include light snacks and refreshments. Please, see attached flyer for details and RSVP as the seats are limited.
Click to enlarge
Download flyer for event (pdf)
All photographs - compliments of Dr. Grace Mankowski and Dr. Alex Mankowski
Story - Compliments of Marina Gavrylyuk
Real Estate Agent with Sutton Group Summit Realty
MarinaG.ca
More Success Stories:
Bill Zufelt - Director and Founder of Sherway Music Academy
Alejandro and Renata Pereira - Taekwondo Instructors
Dmitry Dovnar - IT-professional
Andrew Heron, Sign Market - Business Owner
Erika-Leigh Howard (Stirton) - Rhythmic Gymnast
Chris Chapin, Vice President at Mutual Transportation
Danuta Smiehowski - Head Coach of Olympium Rhythmic Gymnastics Club
Lisa D'Avino - Mortgage Broker
Matin Saliev - Chef
Yevgen Aleksyeyenko - Truck Driver, Owner Operator
Successful people