Homeless man didn't like the shelter breakfasts, so now he's a cook there

It started with a conversation with a homeless shelter employee about the lacklustre breakfast offerings.

"I asked one of the staff why can't one of us go back and make something different for breakfast other than cereal, toast and cold boiled eggs. He said, 'If you want to work back here, stay sober for two years and get a job here.' I set my goal and that's where I am now," Rick Gainford told The Homestretch.

For three years, Gainford was in and out of detox programs and living on the streets of Fort Macleod, Alta., and nearby Lethbridge.

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Today, he's celebrating one year working at the Foothills Detox Centre. In fact, he does two jobs there. He helps new clients and works in the kitchen.

"It's great. I spend as much time as I can there."

Gainford credits the centre's Transition Beds Program for helping him get off the streets, clean and employed.

"The program saved my life. When I was addicted and at the shelter, I had no hope. I didn't care about anything. I was at the stage where living or dying didn't matter to me."

It was two back-to-back tragedies that started his path to homelessness.

"I had two brothers pass away just over a year apart and after that I just spiralled out of control. I ran away from my family and wife and kids. I ended up with a bunch of addictions, in and out of jail, the homeless shelter, sleeping on the street."

Today, he shares his experience with new clients at the centre.

"A lot of them will come in and talk to me. We share stories. I tell them what I did to get through certain situations. I try to be a friend. I take them out to a church barbecue down in the park or the movies just to get out and be normal," Gainford said.

And working at the centreis helping him stay on this path.

"My work is an eight-hour Alcoholics Anonymous meeting every day," he said with a laugh.

"People come in there that I have known from jail, the streets, school, just about everywhere, so I can relate to them and I don't judge them. Whatever they have done, I have probably done. It's easier to bond with someone that you can relate to."

Gainford is sharing his story at the three-day Canadian Rural and Remote Housing and Homelessness Symposium 2018 in Canmore. His message is simple.

"Take it one day at a time and never be too ashamed or embarrassed to phone the detox and get some help. It's a good place to be and you learn some stuff, get some sponsors and get some help and go from there."

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With files from The Homestretch.