Freedom Quest is an agency that is made up of creative, knowledgeable, and skilled individuals who have backgrounds in child & youth care, social work, counselling, psychology, and related fields. What these individuals share is a passion for supporting young people in talking about what is going on in their lives, thinking about what they might want to do next, and empowering them to move forward. ​

Executive Team

Tina Tew - Executive Director

Tina is guided by a passion for supporting young people and families through adversities relating to trauma, substance-use, family violence, mental wellness, and injustice. She naturally works from a place of unconditional positive regard in both her clinical work as well as in her relationships with colleagues and community members. She is warm, creative, and committed to collaboration. She is grounded in the belief that multidisciplinary teams with diverse experiences, knowledges, perspectives, and worldviews are vital to providing a community with the best services possible.

Dailton Magnago - Financial Coordinator

Dailton was born in Brazil and moved to Canada with his family in 2022. He loves to spend time with them talking about life, listening to music, or just watching a good movie. Dailton has a passion for world history, religion, and languages. He speaks Portuguese, Spanish and English.
 
He has a Bachelor Degree of Law, a Postgraduate Diploma in Financial Management (both earned from Brazilian universities), and a Postgraduate Diploma in Business Management (Selkirk College). In Brazil, he practiced law as a licensed attorney for 10 years. He also managed a law firm for about 8 years, where he enhanced his financial expertise, always keeping accounting best practices.
 
He can work alongside worldviews that are not his own and is able to understand and respect different opinions. He believes that the fundamental freedoms of thought, belief, opinion, and expression are necessary for the happiness, growth, and stability of society. Honesty and integrity are some of the attributes that he treasures most.
 
Dailton is a smiley person who is always willing to help his colleagues and make a difference in the workplace.
 
He loves working at Freedom Quest and one of his goals is to make sure that the finance records are always accurate and impeccable!

Pedro Freitas - accreditation Administrator

Pedro Freitas is a Brazilian-born professional who moved to Canada in January 2024 with his wife and his dog. Since arriving, they have been embracing life in British Columbia together. Pedro enjoys doing everything with them, from outdoor adventures to quiet nights at home. Whether it’s fishing, hiking, barbecuing, or exploring the great outdoors, he loves spending time with his two biggest sources of joy and support.
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He has over 11 years of experience in the real estate industry, including six years as a licensed broker and five years as a real estate office manager. He holds a Bachelor's Degree in Business Administration from UNIFOR (University of Fortaleza) and has been a licensed Real Estate Agent since 2014. During his time as an office manager and agent, he focused on supporting clients and team members, always striving to create a welcoming and helpful environment. With a strong business background, Pedro has built a career focused on teamwork, customer service, and supporting people.
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Currently based in Castlegar, British Columbia, Pedro is completing his postgraduate degree in Business Administration at Selkirk College. He works as an Accreditation Administrator at Freedom Quest, focusing his work on a deep commitment to organizational management, social impact, and helping others on their journeys.
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Pedro is someone who genuinely wants to help and serve. He is passionate about making a difference in people’s lives and being a source of support, especially for those facing challenges. He believes in the power of kindness, empathy, and connection.

Leadership Team

Cindy Cropley - Day Treatment Coordinator & Youth Substance Use Counsellor Coordinator

Cindy is proud to have been a part of the original group of Youth Workers who opened Freedom Quest in 2005.
Cindy has had many roles through her years at Freedom Quest and currently is the Coordinator of the Regional Alcohol and Drug Day Treatment Program (RADD) and is the Coordinator of the Youth Substance Use Counsellor team.
Cindy loves working for youth and lives in appreciation and gratitude of their willingness to trust, share, learn and grow as they move through their desired changes while in our programs. Cindy provides support, education, and advocacy to youth and their supports. Cindy strives to create environments that are safe, caring, non-judgmental, empowering, and fun. Cindy believes in providing youth services that are as barrier free as possible which includes providing them respectful confidential services and meeting them where they are at mentally, physically, emotionally, spiritually, and even geographically. Cindy is also proud to be a part of and a support to the team of Freedom Quest Counsellors who show up and give their very best to youth as they journey through change.

Lynsey Souza - Regional Concurrent Disorders Clinician

Lynsey completed a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology at Simon Fraser University, and a Master’s in Counselling (MC:AT) through Athabasca University, in conjunction with a Diploma in Art Therapy (DVATI) at Vancouver Art Therapy Institute. 

Lynsey recognizes the importance of developing relationships with local services, and services beyond our local limits in order to work together to reduce barriers to youth accessing medical and mental health care. She looks forward to taking part in striving for continuity of care in the services available to youth and their families. She sees that this collaboration between service providers is integral to bridging the gaps that youth can face in accessing services.

Honouring youth’s self-knowledge, and experience is central in the work that Lynsey does. She believes it is essential for youth to develop a sense of agency in making decisions for themselves, and to recognize their own power in that agency. Her role is to bring the resources to the table and invite youth to consider how they would like to use them in the context of their own lived experience. Supporting youth to identify how they see themselves engaging in support services, what they hope for, and what steps they would like to take in making change invites youth to develop awareness of their capacity to make intentional choices and take action in their own lives. 
 
Lynsey takes a youth-centered, relational, holistic and generalist approach to working with youth where the biological, psychological, social factors of their experience and life context are considered.

TBD - Therapeutic Recreation Programming Coordinator

This position is vacant. Check out current postings here.

Mandy Root - Prevention Coordinator & Nelson Youth Substance Use Counsellor

Bio & photo coming soon...

Samantha Jackson - Residence Manager

​With many years of experience in residential care, Samantha is excited about her role as Residential Coordinator. She knows it is an amazing opportunity to provide youth in the West Kootenay’s with a stable, safe, warm, non judgmental, and caring home base. The home is where the day starts and where it ends, and Samantha will do everything she can to ensure youth living in Freedom Quest homes feel cared for and happy when they wake and when they go to sleep! 
 
Samantha has been working with youth since 2012 and has had the privilege of working in many diverse roles throughout Canada and beyond. The majority of this work has been with youth aged 13-18 struggling with substance misuse, mental health concerns, sexual exploitation, and criminal involvement. Samantha also has a passion for recreation, especially outdoor recreation, and has been able to bring this into the work she does. She is excited to work with her team to make this a large part of daily life for the youth living in the home. Samantha feels privileged to work in this field and constantly strives to bring this gratitude to her relationships with youth. She sees all of the youth she works with as masters of their own destiny and endeavors to assist them in meeting their goals however she can. 
 
When she’s not at work, you can find Samantha on the side of a mountain, either skiing or mountain biking. Samantha loves to be outside, but also loves spending time indoors reading a good book. She is calm, funny, and comes with lots of fun quirks! 

Staff Team

Substance Use Services Team

Holly Hume - Grand Forks Youth Substance Use Counsellor

Engaging, fun, and thought-provoking, Holly enjoys facilitating workshops and creatively assisting Boundary area youth meet their full potential. Previous to joining Freedom Quest, Holly worked with Community Futures Boundary for 10 years as an Employment Counsellor, Workshop Facilitator, and Boundary Youth Success Program Coordinator and Lead Facilitator. Holly completed her Social Work Diploma in Calgary where she worked with various social services agencies with individuals, families and youth. Holly loves the outdoors and incorporating recreation into her work with youth. Holly is passionate about empowering and supporting youth.

Lisette McCracken - Kaslo Youth Substance Use Counsellor

Lisette is a Metis woman from the Foothills of Treaty 6 and 7 territory who moved to Kaslo, BC with her family in 2021. As a trained Indigenous Art Therapist, Lisette graduated and received her post-baccalaureate diploma from the Kutenai Art Therapy Institute in 2023 and is a professional member of the Canadian Art Therapy Association. Lisette joined the Freedom Quest crew in 2022 and through her role as a Youth Substance Use Counsellor, she works with youth both individually and in group supporting a diverse range of needs. Her passion is creating safe and inclusive spaces for youth to gather, connect, slow down and be their whole selves.
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As a Metis woman, Lisette is a passionate advocate and ally for BIPOC and all marginalized peoples. She works diligently to create and hold safe, anti-oppressive, trauma-responsive, and inclusive spaces. Through her lived experience as a youth who struggled with abuse, poverty, homelessness, addiction, and displacement, she is dedicated to working with and supporting youth through a trauma-informed relational lens. While she maintains her professional/academic life, she is most importantly a mother of three children, is a self-taught artist/creator, and loves taking the path less followed roaming the natural world.

Maggie  herbert - Trail/Salmo Youth Substance Use Counsellor

Having worked with a variety of social service organizations throughout the last five years, Maggie looks forward to providing accessible, non-judgmental and consistent support for youth in the community. She is a lover of nature, creativity and exploration, and prioritizes relationality and self-determination for those she works alongside.
 
Maggie holds Bachelors degrees in Psychology and Social Work from the University of Victoria, and is committed to lifelong learning and centering experiential voices. With training and lived experience in trauma-informed care, harm reduction, advocacy and outreach, Maggie looks forward to cultivating a space in community for youth to process, explore, share, and play without barriers.
 
Outside of work, you can find Maggie skiing, hiking, and camping throughout the Kootenays, trying new crafts and hobbies, and reading a good book (recommendations always welcome)! 

AisHA Mulhall - Nakusp Youth Substance Use Counsellor

For the past 10 years Aisha Mulhall has worked with children, youth and families as an art instructor and therapist, behavioural interventionist and education assistant. She holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree, from the University of Waterloo, with a Teaching Specialization involving additional courses in educational sociology and psychology. Building relationships with youth, families and the community has been the building block of Aisha’s work. The kind of work she believes that is built on a foundation of kindness, trust, understanding, respect, and a genuine interest in improving quality of life.
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Aisha brings her love of art as well as the passion she has always carried in providing support to those in need. She loves living in Nakusp and enjoying all that the Kootenays has to offer in outdoor adventure and vibrant community.​

MEagan Zunti - Day treatment Facilitator

Bio coming soon!

CRAIG ORRETT - CASTLEGAR & Slocan YOUTH SUBSTANCE USE COUNSELLOR

Bio & photo coming soon...

Residential Services Team

Residence Coordinators 

Nicole Johnstone

Sierra Morehouse

Residential Child & Youth Workers

Coralie Drysdale

Jayden Godkin

Jeffery Andrews

Kirandeep Kaur

Ma Charmagne Caling

Mahendra Tomar

Kyla Phillips

Chris Shortall

Mollie Jarrett

Lydia Neuman

Ernesto Realuyo

Kaleigh Herald

Junie Moralda

Timothy Thibeodeau

Richard Okru

Candice Radtke

Michael Cloutier