Grant Helps Deliver New Recovery Beds for Realistic Success
$30,000 Grant
Surrey Homelessness and Housing Society’s grant is helping Realistic Success Recovery Society complete renovations on a 10-bed facility that will support men on their substance use recovery journey and provide space for two administrative offices.
A truly made-in-Surrey organization, Realistic Success Recovery Society is dedicated to helping men recover from addiction and set them on a path to rebuild their lives. Co-founded by late longtime former Surrey Councillor Gary Robinson and his wife Susan Sanderson in 2007, the Realistic Success model was inspired by Gary’s own experience recovering from addiction. To date, it has supported more than 2,600 men.
“The place Gary went to for recovery didn’t feel safe and supportive. He came out of that experience wanting to create somewhere positive for men to get the help they need,” said Susan. Gary passed away in 2013. Susan has carried on his legacy and continued to grow the organization as its executive director.
“In 2015, we had an opportunity to buy the facility we’d been renting for five years,” explains Susan. “It was well-priced because it couldn’t support a basement suite but with renovations, we knew it could be perfect for us long-term.”
Those renovations included adding 500 square feet of new construction, as well as building a new kitchen and upgrading a main floor washroom to be accessible.
“Originally, we planned to add 300 square feet of space, but City regulations required us to evolve our plans,” said Susan. “At the same time, costs were going up and I was applying for funding from a variety of sources to make it happen. The Surrey Homelessness and Housing Society grant is very helpful in achieving our goal.”
When complete, Realistic Success will have capacity to support 50 men in recovery, across five facilities in Surrey. The renovated program house is expected to be ready to welcome clients this summer.