From My Family to Yours

Sending this Christmas greeting to you and your family is a special way to wrap up my first year as CEO. This has really been an action-packed and eventful year for us all in the George Spady Society. A big development was one of our main funding sources changing from Homeward Trust to the Assisted Living and Social Services (ALSS) Ministry of the Government of Alberta. Considering the scope of that change, we fared well and retained most of our funding. In the process we built important new relationships with ALSS representatives so I feel quite confident as we move into the New Year.

Of course, a special development in 2025 was opening our brand new Medically Supported Detox in the Stony Plain area. Our downtown site that opened in 1983 has been the GSS ‘flagship’  where GSS services began and grew to our current multi-site, multi-program status. It was an honor to be part of the grand opening ceremony in September with Minister Wilson of the Ministry of Mental Health and Addiction (MHA) whose support was instrumental in moving the new site forward. Thanks to everyone involved in planning and setting up the lovely new facility that we’re proud to have as part of GSS service family.

And this year another reason to be very proud is the new Holyrood Supportive Housing site that opened in the fall. This striking new building, set in the beautiful community of Holyrood, is our largest Supportive Housing site and will be home to 63 individuals. The Holyrood team was in place early in the year so was well-trained and ready to jump in and start filling up the site as soon as it opened.

Another important development that is more behind the scenes is three new board members stepping into the governance role for the Agency. The Board of Directors provides overall guidance for the agency and Board members bring valuable insights and experience from different community sectors. Our new members have backgrounds in health care, accounting, law, and psychology and some work for the City of Edmonton which will bring added strength to the Board as we move into 2026.

It’s been a year of transition for all of us, and I want to thank each and every one of you for the valuable role you play in the George Spady Society. Stepping in as the new CEO has certainly been a transition for me. I’m pleased to say that my family is still talking to me. Like your families, they helped me maintain valuable work/life balance during this busy year so it’s a pleasure to include them in this special greeting to all of you for the Christmas holiday season. From my family to you and your family, we wish a very peaceful and joyful holiday and a healthy, fulfilling 2026!