Character Conference

The Abbotsford character conference was an excellent opportunity to learn about what the city of Abbotsford is doing for the homeless community. There were three keynote speakers who shared their stories to inspire young people to make a change. There was also a Q&A session in which a police officer, city of Abbotsford worker and self proclaimed "street mom" answered any questions we have have on the topic of homelessness. This conference was a very inspiring and educational experience and I would love to attend plenty more events like this one.

Key Takeaways

Skid Row to CEO

Joe Roberts was living on the streets in the 80s as a drug addict in downtown Vancouver. He eventually reached out to his mother for rehab and turned his life around. After gaining sobriety, Joe became a successful business man until he eventually decided to follow his passion for helping others who are struggling on the streets like he used to. Joe believes in looking at what is possible in life instead of focusing on probably. If there is possibility, you are capable of achieving it.

Q&A

Kim Frisen (oat clinic worker), Kevin Murray (abby police officer), and Mike Sikora (city of Abbotsford worker) provided a lot of insight about the condition of Abbotsford in terms of its homelessness problem. There is extremely limited resources available for helping those most in need. Rehab facilities have extremely long waitlists which make it extremely difficult to help those who are having breakthrough moments and ask for help. Generally by the time help becomes available, the motivation has passed. Awareness and action are essential in addressing and solving the homelessness problem. Officer Murray spoke on how people can help homeless people in their every day life. He stated that simply being kind and treating them as human can make a world of difference. Handing out food, money or other resources may be counterproductive as that discouraged people from reaching out to official organizations for help because they have everything they feel need on the streets.

Jory Smallenberg

Jory was the valedictorian of her grad class at WJ Mouat. She spoke on the hard work and dedication that it took for her to receive a full ride scholarship to university. Jory faced hard times when she spend two years dedicating her life to getting into a school program just to be rejected twice in a row. She discovered her passion for helping refugees and now finds joy in working with those in need. Jory's story inspires perseverance and finding your true calling in life. Using the skills you acquire in life to help others can be one of the most rewarding experiences.