Building hope and resilience: Keshia MacDonald’s path to social work

A few years ago, Keshia MacDonald took a leap of faith and enrolled in the inaugural class in the Bachelor of Social Work (BSW) program at Cape Breton University (CBU).  

After graduating in May, she began her new career as a social worker at Crossroads in Sydney and her faith in her choice to go back to school has been rewarded in immeasurable ways.  

“My work as a social worker is more than a profession; it’s a passion shaped by my experience raising a child with autism spectrum disorder and witnessing firsthand the importance of accessible and equitable support,” she says. 

Crossroads is a service provided through Nova Scotia Health’s Mental Health and Addictions Program (MHAP), which offers a variety of outreach, housing and community supports for people living with mental illness. The team supports people with goals relating to living, learning, working and social domains, with a key focus on maintaining and building sustainable skills and supports. 

For 14 years, Keshia served as a MHAP housing support worker, assisting community partners in helping clients in and around the Sydney region find stable housing. 

“I’m still supporting a lot of the same clients I did before and other clients who need positive structure to their day,” Keshia says. 

While she was happy in her old role, she wanted to do more, and the introduction of the BSW program at CBU was the perfect opportunity for her to do just that.  

“I always wanted to take social work, but most of the programs you have to move off island, so when the program at CBU came about, I decided to jump on it,” she says. “I felt like I was at a point where I wanted to broaden my skillset and be able to help more people.”  

Adult community mental health and addictions continues to make improvements in providing person-centered care that is culturally responsive and evidence based. Crossroads has evolved to become an expanded recovery-focused program that provides supports and opportunities to adults living with mental illness who also experience functional challenges in their day-to-day lives. 

Part of Keshia’s role involves collaboration with inpatient care, helping clients that benefit from support transition from care and connecting to the Crossroads outpatient services.  

“I love it. It’s interesting, and there’s a lot of people who don’t even know about the services offered,” she says. “So, I’ve been getting a lot of people through the door and showing them the programs.” 

Keshia says she comes to work each day excited to be a part of making a difference in people’s lives. 

“I love seeing people overcome challenges and supporting them with reclaiming their life and their recovery,” she says. “It’s a joy seeing how resilient they are and how much they can overcome when they’re provided with the right supports.”  

Photo of Keshia MacDonald with her son.