A Kamloops City Councillor will be taking over as the Executive Director of A Way Home Kamloops after the untimely death of its founder, Katherine McParland, last December.
Sadie Hunter steps into the role today after what the organization says was an extensive search for someone who would carry forward McParland’s vision to end youth homelessness.
“You know I have spoken in the media about some of the challenges that I had as a young single parent but I also do have some experience with housing instability in my teenage years,” Hunter said on the NL Noon Report. “Most of my peers, many of them, were also either in foster care or living in unstable housing situations because their home life wasn’t safe.”
Hunter says her immediate focus will be to support staff as well as at-risk youth in the Kamloops area.
“Having that experience and understanding [and] to be able to bring that and integrate it with my thirty plus years of additional experience, I’m going to support the organization and the staff as best as I can,” she said.
“So I’ll be going into the office today and doing a bit of an orientation and getting to meet some of the staff.”
She says she has the support of her council colleagues as she prepares for her new position.
“They are complementary roles. I mean I am already advocating for the community as a whole and what better role for a community leader to have than to be advocating for some of our vulnerable population and supporting our community that way,” Hunter said, noting she would recuse herself from any decisions that could be perceived as a conflict of interest.
“Its no different that what many other individuals on council do for a variety of reasons.”
Board Chair Louise Richards says Hunter was an early supporter of A Way Home Kamloops and participated in events like the Camp Out to End Youth Homelessness.
“The Board is excited to welcome Sadie to the A Way Home Kamloops Society,” Richards said. “We feel that Sadie’s range of life, educational and professional experiences brings a wealth of knowledge to the Society, and with our complement of staff and youth, will be able to carry on our critical mission of ending youth homelessness.”
