Heather was 12 years old the first time she left home.
“It was after a fight with my mom. I didn’t know where I was going, I just needed to get out,” recalls Heather, who is now in her fifties. “I was literally walking down the road with no plan.”
Heather grew up in southern Ontario in a small rural town in the ‘70s and ‘80s. In her home, she experienced abuse, family conflict, parents with severe and persistent mental health disorders, and the impact of substance use issues.
The first time she left, it was for three days.
Then for a couple of weeks.
Then for several months.
This instability continued for three years.
“Sometimes I went back because authorities made me,” she says. “At times, I went back because it got too hard to be on my own.”
“I was cold and hungry,” she adds. “Sometimes I went back because I believed things would be better. I was caught between a rock and a hard place.”
Over the years of instability, as a young person experiencing homelessness, Heather moved around a lot: sometimes she slept on people’s couches. Sometimes she slept in a tent, in the woods. Sometimes, she was on the street of a big nearby city.
“I had to do very difficult things to survive,” she says. “But my house was so incredibly unstable and violent, and so rife with mental health issues, that I thought it would be safer for me to just get away.”
A career of lifelong impact
For the last few years, Heather Dobson has served as United Way East Ontario’s Chief People Officer. This month, as United Way shares its Match the Moment campaign to end youth homelessness, Heather is also marking her retirement.
“As I wind down my career and reflect on my impact, I’m also witnessing the community stepping up for youth homelessness in a way it hasn’t before. It is a full circle moment, and the time feels right to share my story to encourage people to help end youth homelessness,” says Heather. “I want people to know that when we invest in young people, and when we do the things that we know will help them–we are investing in the next generation.”
More than 1,200 youth in Ottawa experience homelessness each year.
“As a young person, I experienced homelessness. This time in my life was difficult, but it also led to me being a person of great empathy. It helped me develop my drive, and it helped me realize that everyone has an unseen story,” says Heather.
“I want the community to know that the youth who are struggling today are human beings who deserve love and respect and care, and I want people in our region to know that—that kid that they just walked past on the street? There’s potential there.”
After starting her career as a youth counsellor, Heather transitioned to human resources. A certified HR leader with a wealth of education and training, Heather has led United Way’s people and culture strategy, including—among many other things—the organization’s learning and development, equity, diversity, inclusion and belonging work.
She is married, with two children and four grandchildren.
This month, she is looking back at what it took her to get from where she was, to where she is today.
Heather’s turning point
“As I approached 16, I ended up going back home,” she says. “I had lost a very dear friend to an alcohol and drug overdose, and watching her die was a turning point for me. I didn’t want to end up like that.”
Her friend’s death is when the scales tipped for Heather: in her case, being on the street no longer felt safer than being in her parent’s home. Enough had changed in the house while she was gone, that she felt she could return.
“I knew there had to be a better way,” says Heather.
It was still difficult, but what made all the difference was the support of a new school and a new teacher—a safety net.
“I had been through a lot,” she recalls. “When I walked into the gifted program at my new school on my sixteenth birthday I felt completely out of place around those who I thought were smarter and more privileged than me. I said ‘I’m out, I quit. I don’t belong here.’”
But her teacher didn’t let her leave.
“I remember my teacher saying: ‘You do belong here. I believe in you. I will walk every step with you if you let me help you be successful,” she says. “She saw things in me when I couldn’t.”
Together, we can end youth homelessness
At United Way East Ontario, we focus on prevention-first solutions that create long-term stability. Donors support counselling for young people when they struggle with their mental health, reconnection with family and stabilization of strained relationships, provide communication and conflict management skills programs to navigate challenging circumstances, and offer practical learning opportunities such as managing money, finding housing and staying in school.
“This is exactly the kind of help I needed,” says Heather. “Support can absolutely change young lives. It changed mine.”
In June, donations to Match the Moment will be tripled, thanks to a generous donation from the Turnbull Family Foundation.
“I know many people in our community are going through difficult times right now, but I truly believe that every dollar counts,” says Heather. “This is why I was so proud to end my career at United Way. It is also why I am so proud to call myself a donor.”
“Support can absolutely change young lives. It changed mine.”
“I have always believed in the work of United Way—every single piece that we touch,” she adds. “But to end my career and see the commitment from the community to end youth homelessness? This has given me hope and confidence in the future.”
