At 18 years old, Ange Neil was dealing with addictions, mental health issues and facing homelessness. Thoughts of suicide lingered daily.
That was seven years ago. Today, at 25, Neil looks back on the dark days and contemplates what might have happened had Haven’s Way not intervened.
“I’d be living in a shelter probably, or dead. I would be probably dead.”
Neil, who identifies as a non-binary transgender person, still faces some struggles. Neil credits Haven’s Way – a community-based residential program for at-risk female youth in Calgary – with providing the stable environment and support young people need to get their life straightened out.
“Healing happens in relationships and that’s what this program is centred on, right? And so, they gave me those relationships that I needed at the time. They helped me reconnect with my biological family and have a good relationship with them,” Neil said.
“If they didn’t have the resource to deal with a certain issue, they sent me somewhere but came with me. They didn’t just send me away, they came with me to the doctor’s or the mental health or addiction or whatever. They were supportive all the way through.”
Neil said the support has continued seven years later.
“I have people to call when stuff gets hard, you know? They’re what families do, they show up for you.”
Co-founded by Karen Sherbut, who as a youth was homeless herself, Haven’s Way strives to provide a stable and safe home environment for its residents.
They teach the youth essential life skills like cooking, budgeting, how to study and how to set and achieve life goals. Through live in-house parents and a dedicated programming team, the registered charity essentially provides the type of support any loving parent would.
“It’s really that of creating a healthy, caring family environment. It’s a simple concept when you think of it but it’s as complicated and challenging as any parent is able to imagine.”
And as any parent can imagine, feeding, housing, raising up to six children aged anywhere from 14 to 24 years old comes with a sizable price tag.
“There’s different foundations and organizations and corporations that support us. We’re constantly out looking at applications and funding opportunities, third-party fundraising events, as well as a couple of key signature fundraising events that Safe Haven Foundation initiates,” Sherbut said.
Established in 2000, the Haven’s Way program continues to gain traction throughout Calgary and beyond. The goal now is to establish a proper alumni program and to eventually provide subsidized housing to former residents like Neil, who has since graduated from the social work program at the University of Calgary and who now has a future to look forward to.
“I actually believe that I have a life ahead of me that I’m excited to live.”
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