The Peer Support Team
Who We Are
PEERS SUPPORTING PEERS
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Getting assistance from someone who has been through the same experiences as you has tremendous value. At 7th Step, we place emphasis on learning from our members with lived experience being inside prisons across the country. Long-term 7th Step members are people who have been to prisons and have made significant changes in their lives so that they never go back.
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New members can use the success of long-standing members as a model for their own recovery. Ex-offenders who have adapted their behavior are a source of motivation for new members looking for inspiration and these older members illuminate a road to recovery.
Nancy Everson
Peer Support Coordinator
Nancy attended her first 7th Step Society Street Group Meeting in March 2018. It was the best decision she ever made. Since then, she has excelled exceptionally within the society, becoming a core group member, a director on the provincial board, chairperson for the board of directors, peer support worker and recently accepted the Peer Support Coordinator position. She graduated from MBC with a diploma in Counselling/Social Human Services.
7th Step supports her, without judgment, which allows her to grow strong in her recovery over the past 5 years. She now wants to give back what was freely given to her. She is dedicated to supporting those who have had conflict with the law and those who struggle with addiction. She believes her empathy and lived experience are her best assets to support others. She will be forever grateful to the members of 7th Step!
Joe Gibson
Peer Support Worker
Joe Gibson has been a core group member of the 7th Step Society of Nova Scotia since early 2022. He is an ex-offender who decided that he needed to change. Joe returned to school to get his high school diploma and graduated from NSCC social services program. With the help of 7th Step, he received peer support training. He is a part of the Pardon Me 7th Step Society of Canada Program and is on the way to getting a pardon. Joe says our organization gave him a spot to express himself and share his weeks in our weekly street group meetings. The 7th Step Society of NS employs Joe as a Peer Support Worker. He is building compacity within Cape Breton.
Dominic Thomas
Volunteer Peer Support Worker
​My name is Dominic Thomas. I volunteer as a Peer Support for the 7 Step Society of Nova Scotia. I was born and raised in Dartmouth. I have been in active addiction for 30 years and was incarcerated for the better part of 13 years; I finally decided to pick myself and get the help I needed. I went to the Freedom Foundation of Nova Scotia, a non-profit addiction treatment facility, and was introduced to the 7th Step Society of NS. The support from the staff and all walks of life are beneficial. I want to participate and give back to the community that supported me at my lowest time. The 7th Step Society is the perfect fit for me!
