I grew up in the Hart, in Prince George, in a home supported by a single family income. My dad worked up to 90 hours a week, and the strain was real. I had to help him in the garden, growing vegetables, and I planted 30 trees in our yard. I grew up the Xennial way, learning to navigate both analogue and digital worlds.
My path through life and education was not straightforward. I dropped out of high school, and I had to learn to read later in life. Those experiences stay with me. They help me understand how easily someone’s potential can be missed when we only see the situation they are in.
I also survived an abusive relationship involving intimate partner violence (IPV). For six months, I lived on 30-cent noodles. Those experiences stay with me as I think about safety, food and dignity. They are part of why I want Our Way to help people find useful information, make their own choices and feel supported as they move forward.
My brother was my best friend. When he died by suicide, our family changed overnight. The family I knew was suddenly living with a loss that touched everything. Grief became part of my story, and so did the work of finding a way to keep going.
Music helped me do that. Playing music kept me going and kept me determined. It gave me something to practise, a reason to keep showing up and a way to express what was difficult to put into words. Through bands and ensembles, I also experienced what it means to contribute to something larger than yourself. Each person brings a part. You listen, adjust and work together until those parts become music.
Resilience has helped me move forward, but the relationships and teamwork along the way matter just as much. My journey has taught me to keep learning, to accept support and to recognise the strengths other people bring. It has also taught me that a person’s circumstances do not tell you everything about who they are or what they can become.
Studying leadership in the MBA program at the University of Northern British Columbia helped me connect lived experience with a clearer understanding of leadership. I came back again and again to empathy, trust, communication and learning through experience. I began thinking more deeply about how the parts of a team or an organisation affect one another, and how leadership can help people see those connections.
For me, thoughtful decision-making starts with listening, asking questions and checking my assumptions. I want to understand how a decision affects people, make the reasoning clear and help others use their own judgement. Clarity gives people a stronger foundation to act and contribute.
That same commitment extends to the next generation. I want children to thrive, not just survive. The idea behind Success by 6 resonates with me: strong foundations in the early years grow through the support of families and connected communities. Building bridges is also about helping the generation that comes after us find belonging, opportunity and the support to grow.
I’m half Gitxsan and half Scottish. I sometimes joke that both sides have grievances with the empire. Interconnectedness matters to how I understand community. I bring my own experience and perspective to this work, with respect for the distinct knowledge, voices and priorities of others.
That is the foundation of my Building Bridges keynotes. I use a Rubik’s Cube to make connections visible: move one piece, and others move with it. The conversation is about understanding those relationships, learning from one another and making room for complementary strengths. People do not need to bring the same gifts to make a valuable contribution.
The Our Way Project is the culmination of that discussion. I want to help people find connection, gain traction and feel empowered to take their next step. I know what it is like to need a way forward. Building community is how I put what I have learned into practice.
My story is still unfolding. So is Our Way. What guides me is the desire to build bridges that help people recognise their own strengths and discover what becomes possible when we work together.