Road to Recovery Walk in Red Deer shows support to people battling addiction
Published 2:04 pm Saturday, October 3, 2026
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Thousands of dollars were raised through the Road to Recovery Walk to support people battling addiction.
The fourth edition of annual fundraiser for the Red Deer Dream Centre took place Saturday, Oct. 3 at CrossRoads Church in Red Deer County.
As of Oct. 3, about $130,000 had been raised, although donations will remain open until Oct. 20. Wes Giesbrecht, Red Deer Dream Centre co-founder and board chair, said he expects the centre will get close to raising its goal of $175,000.
“When it comes to operations at the Dream Centre, this is our big fundraiser for the year,” said Giesbrecht.
“The success of this event speaks to the philanthropic nature of Central Albertans. This is our fourth year in operation and we’re seeing some significant results. Recovery is possible.”
The Red Deer Dream Centre is a non-profit, faith-based residential addiction recovery and treatment facility for adult men located in downtown Red Deer.
“We look after individuals who come in from detox. We provide a five and a half-month program that deals with the hurts, habits and hangups of addiction. We focus on why you’re using, not what you’re using,” explained Giesbrecht.
“This is a grassroots organization. It started from local people who wanted to get involved. It took a lot of work. It was a concept and now it’s an actual viable recovery centre in a downtown that needed recovery.”
The Road to Recovery Walk comes just one week after Recovery Day in downtown Red Deer. Giesbrecht said these kinds of events can help eliminate the stigma surrounding addiction.
“You don’t have to go far in Red Deer to see the effects of addiction. I think it’s still a dirty word and it can be hard for people to get their head around it. We’re still trying to break those barriers,” he said.
“There aren’t many people who I meet out in the community who haven’t been affected in some way by addiction. Once we start getting to the root of why we’re struggling so much, that’s when our city can heal.”
For more information on the Red Deer Dream Centre, visit www.rddc.ca.