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.

Chandra Norn - Administrative Assistant

​Chandra’s passion lies in supporting and inspiring others in knowing they are not alone. She has a deep respect for our Individuality, which is what drew her to work for Freedom Quest. It also plays an important role in her work as an artist and graphic designer.

She’s a keen problem solver with an organizational mind, so taking on the role of Administrative Assistant is a perfect fit. If she’s in the office, Drop by and she’ll be more than happy to share in some good conversation and a warm mug of tea.      

Dailton Magnago - Financial Coordinator

Dailton was born in Brazil and moved to Canada with his wife and three children in early 2022. He loves to spend time with his family enjoying nature`s beauty, talking about life, listening to music or just watching a good movie. Walking in a park and watching soccer are some of his hobbies. Dailton has a passion for world history and foreign cultures. He speaks Portuguese, Spanish and English.
 
He has a Bachelor of Law and a Postgraduate Diploma in Financial Management, both earned from Brazilian universities. Currently, he is attending a Postgraduate Program in Business Management at Selkirk College. Dailton has a lot of experience in financial management and office administration. Working with numbers, databases and spreadsheets makes him happy. He has also practiced law as a licensed attorney for about 8 years in Brazil.
 
In Law School and during the time he practiced law, he learned how to work alongside worldviews that were not his own, to understand and respect different opinions and to defend people`s freedom. He believes freedom to be a fundamental right that is absolutely necessary for any society in the world. Honesty and integrity are some of the attributes that he treasures most.
 
Dailton is a happy and smiley person who is always willing to make the difference in the workplace. 

Leadership Team

Cindy Cropley - Regional Alcohol & Drug Day Treatment (RADD) Program Coordinator & Youth Substance Use Counsellor Coordinator

Photo coming soon...
Bio coming soon...

Liz Kunkle - Regional Concurrent Disorders Clinician

Liz has RETIRED (as of June 30, 2021)! Congrats Liz! 
Who will join Freedom Quest as our next Concurrent Disorders Clinician??? Check out our job posting here!
I am Freedom Quest's Regional Concurrent Disorders Clinician which is a fancy way of saying I drive all over the West Kootenays and Boundary region meeting with young people who have concerns about their substance use and mental health issues. I have had the honour of working with youth and adults for over 30 years.
Since moving to the area in 2014 I have learnt a great deal as I built my home near Nelson. I took up hockey, mountain biking and downhill skiing in the past few years. One is never too old to learn and getting out in nature is the best way I have found, for myself, to combat stress and spike those happy neurotransmitters.
I am into hanging out with friends/family, walking my 3-legged dog (Light-saber), fishing, rock hounding, hiking, biking, skiing, gardening, cooking, travelling, mushroom and fiddlehead hunting.

Matt McClelland - Therapeutic Recreation Programming Coordinator & Castlegar Youth Substance Use Counsellor

Matt is on LEAVE currently. 
Who will join Freedom Quest as our next Recreation Coordinator & Castlegar Youth Substance Use Counsellor? Check out our job postings here!
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Matt began working in the social service industry in 2006. When not at the office, you can find Matt enjoying the local mountain bike trails, or paddling a local river. Matt's current role combines his love of the outdoors with his passion for youth work.  Matt specializes in group facilitation, and brings the unique skill set of having spent many years facilitating therapeutic programming in remote wilderness locations. His strengths-based and client-centred approach practice shine through in the trusting, transformative, and lasting relationships he builds with youth and families. Matt is currently completing his graduate studies in Leadership. 

Mandy Root - Nelson Youth Substance Use Counsellor & Prevention Coordinator

Photo coming soon...
Bio coming soon...

Samantha Jackson - Residence Coordinator
​With many years of experience in residential care, Samantha is excited about her  role as a Youth Residence Coordinator. She knows it will be 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 the home 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

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 Treaty 6 and 7 territory who recently relocated to Kaslo, BC with her family in 2021. She is currently completing her final year of training as an Art Therapist at the Kutenai Art Therapy Institute in Nelson, BC and she recently joined the Freedom Quest crew as the Kaslo Youth Substance Use Counsellor.
As a Metis woman, Lisette is a passionate advocate and ally for all marginalized peoples and works diligently to create and hold safe, anti-oppressive, 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, and loves taking the path less followed roaming the natural world.

Shannon Udall - Trail/Salmo Youth Substance Use Counsellor

In years of working in the social service field and studying social work, Shannon has developed a passion for working with children, youth and families who are struggling with homelessness, poverty, substance use and mental health. Shannon thrives when developing and facilitating creative therapeutic programming and is very excited to join the Freedom Quest team!
 
Shannon brings experience in group facilitation and therapeutic outdoor recreation. She values group programming as an opportunity to foster authentic connection, find strength in vulnerability, create community, and have some fun along the way. 
 
Shannon’s practice is guided by honesty, respect, curiosity and social justice.  She has completed a BSW at Western University and an MSW at University of Toronto specializing in social policy.
 
Shannon is eager to experience all of what the West Kootenays have to offer and enjoys snowboarding, white water paddling, and exploring, with a side of board games and crafts in her free time.

Savana Roy - Nakusp Youth Substance Use Counsellor

Savana completed her bachelor’s degree in Social Work at the University of Calgary. Learning later in life that she was of Ojibwe heritage, she fueled her curiosity by enrolling in as many Indigenous courses and trainings as she could find. This curiosity developed into a passion for working with and advocating for Indigenous families.
 
Savana has previous work experience as a community disability practitioner, an addictions support worker, and practicum placements in youth mentorship and counselling with Indigenous families. Savana naturally works from a strength-based perspective and often leans on her life experiences of loss, addictions, and a traumatic brain injury, to deepen her clients healing and help them navigate their experiences and build resiliency.
 
Savana was an advisory committee member on the faculty of Social Works Peer Support Group where she helped build the program and co-facilitated a session on overcoming adversity, trauma, and the power of community. She loved being able to create a safe place for vulnerability, healing, and growth, and enjoyed being able to get to know others’ stories and learn about their unique coping mechanisms and passions.
 
When Savana is not at work, she is usually out adventuring with her goofy dog Django, snowboarding, trying something new, or spending time with friends and family. 

Lynsey Souza - Day treatment Facilitator & Slocan Youth Substance Use Counsellor  

Lynsey brings compassion and a background in expressive arts to her position as RADD co-facilitator. She believes strongly in supporting youth (and everybody) to reach towards their creativity and knowledge of themselves as resources for growth and well-being. Of course, she also believes in connecting with the natural world, through adventuring as well as finding stillness and quiet (whichever seems right at the time – maybe both).
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Whether creating (art), exploring solutions, doing something for the first time, or contemplating change (maybe even dreaming), Lynsey is committed to acknowledging the power of doing these things in a group – togetherness is so essential to our well-being, yet in our current world we are often struggling with isolation, or feeling alone in the challenges that we are facing. This is in part what has led Lynsey to the RADD facilitator position, where she hopes to be part of creating a space for individuals to connect with each other and to share group experiences that inspire the energy and empowerment we all need to keep growing. 

Katie John - Concurrent Disorders Clinician 

Katie believes in creating a non-judgmental, safe space for youth in the Kootenay area where they can feel seen and heard. Working through a trauma-informed lens, Katie is passionate about the mind-body connection, particularly learning how it fosters healing and growth in her clients’ lives. Her practice is founded on authenticity, honesty, respect, curiosity, and light-hearted humor.  
 
Growing up in the Trail area, Katie then moved to Calgary to complete a bachelor's degree in Criminal Justice from Mount Royal University and a master's degree in Counselling Psychology from City University of Seattle. With a passion for connecting with people and supporting those who have faced hardships, Katie is excited to be part of the Freedom Quest team. When Katie is not at work she is often outdoors exploring with her dog Sage, at the gym, or spending quality time with family and friends.
 

River Jones - Castlegar/Trail Child and Youth Mental Health Outreach Worker

Photo coming soon...
Bio coming soon...