Steven was referred to the Neil Squire Society by his Ontario Works (new window) Case Worker. With a knee injury and hearing loss, Steven was having difficulty finding employment. He had recently been working in a personal care capacity for a family member but was not interested in pursuing employment in this field in the long term.

Steven is a long standing volunteer as a minor hockey (new window) coach, and is passionate about this type of work. In addition to volunteering as a hockey coach, he also facilitates a hockey camp in Sweden (new window) every summer.

When Steven joined the Society’s Employ-Ability Program he did not have a career goal. He spent time doing some self-exploration to identify his interests and abilities and completed career research in various fields of interest. Employ-Ability Program Facilitator, Polly Beach, asked Steven why he didn’t look into running his own hockey camps in the Ottawa (new window) area, as a small business. It just wasn’t something Stephen had ever considered.

Steven is now working with another hockey enthusiast to start their own hockey program. He has started market research and with the support of Employ-Ability staff, is looking into additional resources for entrepreneurs. He will be attending workshops through Invest Ottawa to learn more about self-employment and the benefits and challenges of starting a business.

When Steven talks about his goal of becoming an entrepreneur in a field that he is so passionate about, he shares that he couldn’t have done it without the help of Employ-Ability staff.

Good luck, Steven!