The Brampton Bulletin,
September 29th, 2005

As Tom Regehr sits across the street from Brampton’s City Hall, he remembers the day when he slept beneath the canopy of the park’s trees. Ten years have passed and a lifetime of change from the days when Regehr lived on the streets, the result of years of drinking and drug abuse. Today, he heads CAST Canada, an organization he started five years ago that looks at reducing the stigma of mental health and addiction through speaking engagements and training for health professionals.

But that is just one part of Regehr’s accomplishments and only one part of the story – a story that he shares in hopes of reaching a soul lost to drugs or offer a helping hand to a family member, friend or health advocate.

Regehr grew up in Brampton, just steps away from the tree where he spent his last night on the streets. “It was August 9, I remember, lying underneath that tree over there,” he points to a spruce not far from the coffee shop in which he now sits, drinking his favourite coffee. Two days and a bus ride later, and Regehr was enrolled in a detox centre in Sudbury before venturing to the treatment centre in Kirkland Lake.

Alcohol was Regehr’s escape of choice, starting like most teens with a few beers and a bottle of red wine. But, where his friends eventually threw up and went home, Regehr seemed to handle his alcohol a little better than most. “I could drink more and for longer,” he said, a fact that did not go unnoticed by his friends.

Other drugs of choice were added to the mix, most potently cocaine, but alcohol was his constant. It continued into university and beyond, with money made from his job in interlocking stone feeding the habit. “They would give me money in an envelope, and that went straight to drugs,” he said, adding that he was a functioning addict at the time.

The reason for the escape from reality was his mother’s mental illness, says Regehr, explaining of his mother’s manic depression.

The turnaround came when he realized that his old escape mechanisms (alcohol and drugs) were no longer working. “The pain still came through,” he explained. Friends and family gave what Regehr describes as a “I love you” sandwich – one piece of bread is “I love you,” the middle says – “But you’re #$@ing up and you need to stop” and the other end, the other piece of bread, is another “I love you.”

It was not one catastrophic event that made him turn around and give stock to his life, but many. One day, while waiting for the Knights’ Table charity diner to open for the day, Regehr bumped into a friend from high school. “The guy was looking at a second house, an investment property and here I was looking at getting a second pair of pants,” he commented.

Another turnaround came from an understanding and patient woman at the main switchboard of the Region of Peel, where Regehr had called looking for help with his addiction. “She knew that I may lose the number she gave me, but offered me the time and understanding.”

“I needed a lot of help to stay sober,” admitted Regehr, explaining that he attended any meeting he could, including Alcoholics Anonymous and two agency-run support groups. There were certain aspects of the meetings he liked – the first half of the AA meeting and the “gentle intervention” at the Credit Valley support group.

After changes were made in the Credit Valley program and realizing that AA did not have a morning meeting available, he decided to open his own support group.

With a small Trillium grant and a strong format, Regehr started the Clean and Sober Thinking Addiction Support Group (CAST).

The first meeting was held in February of 2000, and looked at giving addicts the support and outlet they need to create a better life… everyday. Now, CAST support groups host two meetings per week – every Tuesday morning in Brampton from 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. at St. Paul’s United Church (30 Main Street South), and in Clarkson every Thursday evening from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at 1700 Mazo Crescent (Clarkson).

Word got around about Regehr’s group, and government agencies like Children’s Aid, the Canadian Mental Health Association, the Ontario Substance Abuse Bureau of the Ministry of Health and the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health started to approach him with questions. “I noticed a similarity in the questions being asked by these allied health care professionals,” commented Regehr, adding that he was invited to sit as a “consumer” on panel discussions where professionals could get an inside look at how an addict thinks.

Now, Regehr hosts his own training days every six weeks, often with health professionals coming from across Ontario, to sit and listen to a panel of “consumers” like himself.

The last one (August 05) in Whitby was sold-out, he explained, with 57 in attendance, some as far away as Parry Sound.

Regehr also works with the Peel Regional Police, talking with new recruits prior to graduation about how to handle addicts on the beat, including the best way “to arrest a drunk.” The message may be delivered in a jokey manner, but the seriousness comes across in Regehr’s message.

He also holds positions on many committees, the latest as vice-chair of the ConnexionOntario board, an umbrella organization for the Drug and Alcohol Registry of Treatment – Ontario Problem Gambling Helpline and a new mental health registry just announced.

While Regehr is amazed at the response and respect he gets from these health professionals, nothing is closer to his heart than his work with high school kids and youth groups – the third vein of CAST Canada.

Through CAST Canada’s High School Visit Program, Regehr offers an honest and sincere exchange with area teens. “Something happens to me when I get in front of a group of kids, there’s this connection. My first talk to a Grade 10 class was the richest thing I’ve done,” said Regehr, who admitted he was afraid at first. “I didn’t like kids. I thought they were cocky, unruly and not likely to listen to me. I found that they were the most engaging, honest people – with no question off limits. They really got my story.”

Tamara Leniew, of the Canadian Mental Health Association for Halton Region is not surprised. She writes: “The way Tom connects with these kids is amazing. He touches hearts and changes lives.”

Susan Vincent, executive director of the Ontario Drug and Alcohol Registry of Treatment (DART), Ontario Problem Gambling Helpline (OPGH) believes in Tom’s passion and says it’s his ability to bring a wonderful sense of humour to the presentation that brings Regehr’s story to the forefront.

And, Elaine Moore, regional councillor on Brampton’s own City Council is also a staunch supporter, so much that she organized a small fundraiser last year to ensure that Regehr continues his work in sharing his story and knowledge.

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As an addict, advocate and survivor, Regehr explains that he’s had many on his list of friends to turn to in times of need. His healing, he says, didn’t start until five years ago when he started therapy to deal with the effects of living with a mentally ill mother. “I may have been sober but I was lonely, I couldn’t hold down a job and I had few friends. Through therapy, I learned that I could accept the pain and it wasn’t going to kill me, and it also gave me a safe place to feel and to cry,” he said, expressing gratitude to his therapist Johanna. She also gave him other focusing exercises to keep him in the moment.

Regehr also maintains close ties to his friends on the street, often calling on them to give their insight on the many panel discussions CAST Canada continues to hold.

His “can we talk?” demeanor puts everyone at ease, from the Public Health workers to the students attending his high school outreach presentations. Regehr is open about his past, optimistic about his future and willing to offer help to anyone, be it a fellow addict or the health care professional treating them.