Joe Ferracuti switches to social work from stage lights

After years onstage as a working musician, Joe Ferracuti unplugged from his career and rewrote his future.  

Drawn by family influences and the pull of his own lived experience, he set his sights on social work.  

“I always enjoyed working with people. I think personal lived experiences, too, drove me in this direction and I realized this is something I really liked to do,” Joe says. “Also, accessing mental health services in the past for myself and having a really positive experience with it is part of what made me want to do the same thing going forward.” 

Originally from Ontario, he moved to Montreal to obtain his bachelor of social work at McGill University and then began his career in Ottawa. 

He relocated to the Annapolis Valley in 2021, where some of his family was living and joined Nova Scotia Health’s Mental Health and Addictions Program as an adult community outreach worker. 

His days vary. Sometimes he meets people at the community mental health and addictions clinic  in Kentville and other times he meets people anywhere they are able. 

“It’s a mix, which I like; being able to see people at the clinic or out in the community, in people’s homes. There’s a lot of flexibility, which is very useful,” he says. 

When working with clients, his focus is often on factors outside of direct mental health treatment, helping people make goals and achieve certain things that they can build on and develop.  

“It’s all the stuff that’s happening in someone’s life that they might need some help with,” Joe explains. “Often things are major barriers to treatment, like food insecurity, not having enough money, having to navigate complicated systems - things like this.” 

He describes social work as a broad profession but, at its core, it is filled with people dedicated to helping others navigate through difficult situations. 

“I’m lucky enough to have a job where I get paid to help people through stuff,” he says. “Anytime that I’m working with someone and there’s a really tangible result - like working with somebody to improve their income situation and it improves - that really makes a difference. That’s the kind of stuff I find quite rewarding, just a noticeable result.” 

Joe still works as a musician and often draws on his experience as a musician when he is speaking with clients. 

Music can be therapeutic and with themes in songs that often touch on struggles and resilience, he finds it useful to incorporate into his practice.  

“I am really into improvised music, so there’s a lot of creativity and figuring things out on the spot. And I think about that when working with somebody to come up with a solution that you might not have seen at the beginning of the conversation,” he says. 

“I think the other thing about music is about being present which you have to be in social work. It is like a mindfulness practice.” 

Photo of Joe Ferracuti.