Matthew stood outside the Calgary Dream Centre, wondering if he had the courage to walk back in.
He’d been here before. He’d done the hard work, graduated, and rebuilt his life. Now he’d lost it all again.
His story started years earlier. Matthew spent two years in jail in his early twenties. But when he got out, he was sober again. He fell in love and became a dad to a perfect little girl.
Life felt like it was finally on the right path – like he was becoming who he meant to be.
Then he started drinking again. His girlfriend had had enough. She took their daughter and left.
Matthew let himself go. He’d lost his family. He lost his job. Before long, he was living on the street, using heavy drugs to get through the pain.
A hospital detox program referred him to CDC. He didn’t know what to expect but decided to give it a chance
“From the very first day…it was nothing but love,” he says.
Not just in words, but in action. A safe bed. Warm meals. People who had walked the same road and refused to let him walk it alone. Matthew graduated and reunited with his family. Life was finally coming back together.
However, as time went on, alcohol found its way back into the family, and one morning, Child and Family Services showed up at the door, and his daughter was taken away.
“As soon as the door shut, I fell to the ground,” Matthew remembers. “I had no hope whatsoever.”
He believed he’d used up his second chance. A few days later, he was back at our doors.
This time, Matthew gave it 110%.
He stayed in touch with Child and Family Services. Most nights, he read his daughter bedtime stories over FaceTime from his room at CDC.
“She would always say, ‘Where’s Daddy?'” he remembers. “Daddy’s at the Dream Centre getting better. And she’s like, ‘Oh, you’re gonna be happy.’ And I’m like, ‘Yes, I’m gonna be happy.'”
He did the things that made him uncomfortable: going to meetings, expressing himself, being honest about what was going on. “I took it very serious, especially with [my daughter] needing her dad back. I didn’t wanna let her down again.”
Matthew graduated on his birthday. It was the first time he’d seen his daughter in a long time. “I called it my re-birthday,” he says. “It was like the rebirth of myself.”
From there, he kept putting in the work. Weekend visits with his daughter. Courses. Meetings with child services, where CDC staff and management showed up to support him. Then a place of his own. And eventually, his daughter came home to him full time.
Along the way, Matthew found a spiritual connection he’d never had. “I don’t run the show, the guy upstairs does,” he says. “Once I came to realize that, I felt free. I felt like all this weight was lifted off my shoulders.”
Today, Matthew works at CDC as an Intake Coordinator, and his family is back together. “I could say I’m finally proud of myself.”
His daughter knows exactly where her dad got better. “She’s like, ‘Daddy helps people now,'” Matthew says. “Now I feel like I could help those in need that went through what I went through. Now I could be there for them.”
Matthew’s story is a reminder of something we see every day at CDC: no one is beyond hope. Not even the second time.
Bio coming soon.
Steve Balisky is an intrapreneur with over 15 years of experience driving data-driven transformation within national companies Suncor and Mark’s. He has also been providing leadership consulting to nonprofits for the last 10 years and has served on the CDC board since 2019. Steve holds a Bachelor of Commerce in Operations Management and an MBA in Strategy. He is a husband and father of two, and has his own faith-filled recovery story, which inspires him to support others on their path to recovery.
Ben has been the Lead Pastor of First Assembly Church in Calgary since 2014, bringing over 30 years of ministry and leadership experience to the non-profit sector. He’s also an executive leadership coach, helping leaders thrive across various sectors since 2012. His experience includes serving on national and regional boards within his denomination, as well as supporting Vancouver’s homeless through his past involvement with Operation Compassion. Ben has served on the CDC board in Calgary for the past decade and believes the Church plays a vital role in creating lasting community impact.
Craig Hill has been involved with the Calgary Dream Centre (CDC) since its inception. Starting with trips to the LA Dream Centre where seeds were planted in him that were never forgotten. After years of working in business, real estate, and church ministry, Craig returned to the CDC to step in as the CEO. Craig has a deep appreciation for the life change that happens here, the incredible team, and seeing the redemptive work that God is doing. Outside of work, Craig is a family man who loves nothing more than being with his wife and kids at the lake.
David grew up in northern Canada and attended the University of Alberta where he graduated with a degree in electrical engineering. He worked as an engineer for about seven years before moving into project management and then business management, primarily focused in the oil and gas production and refining industry.
David stepped into the COO role of a business that was in trouble due to the 2008 financial crisis. After turning that business around, he took an international role leading project managers who managed a portfolio of $1.5B of projects around the globe.
Since then, David has consulted for businesses and organizations in medicine, engineering, homelessness, and addiction recovery, and serves on various not-for-profit boards.
David is currently running another business in California that was also in need of a dramatic turnaround and now scaling this business for further profitable growth.
Cal has spent 35 years in the agricultural industry and brings domestic and international executive leadership experience in strategy development, operations, business development, and M&A in a rapid growth environment. He is a Professional Engineer, Certified Post Merger Integration Specialist, and is a holder of the Institute of Corporate Directors Director designation (ICD.D).
Throughout his life, Cal has volunteered in his community in sport and programs that focus on relational, emotional, and spiritual health. He has served on non-profit boards in both governance and advisory capacities. Cal truly believes no one is beyond hope and counts it a privilege to serve at the Calgary Dream Centre.
Bob Nash is a dedicated and service focused professional Electrical Engineer volunteering as Board Chair and Project Manager for the Calgary Dream Centre (CDC). Bob’s involvement with the CDC extends to its earliest days. His faith, and his sincere passion for helping people overcome addiction and restoring their lives, have motivated his service. Using his 35 years of senior management experience at Canadian Pacific Railway, Bob has effectively used his leadership, management, strategic planning, project management skills and philanthropic support to help propel the Calgary Dream Centre to where it is today. Bob and his wife of 44 years have two children and six grandchildren.
