Why I Started Spark Solutions: An Origin Story

Every sport organization has a "Dad."

He's the farmer by trade or the accountant by day, who shows up after a long week to flood the ice at the local rink. In my tiny Central Saskatchewan village, that was my actual dad. He was the one balancing water pressure while my sister and I "helped" by holding the freezing hose. He was driven by a simple, powerful belief: that this rickety rink was the anchor of our community.

That volunteer spirit is the heart and soul of Canadian sport. But I've also seen firsthand how passion alone can lead to burnout, and how good intentions can get lost in the growing complexity of running a modern sport organization. This is the story of why I started Spark Solutions—to honour the legacy of volunteers like my dad by building the strong, sustainable organizations their passion deserves.

The Power of a Well-Run System

Like many Canadians, my childhood was shaped by watching our heroes on the world stage: Donovan Bailey's explosive gold in Atlanta, the Sandra Schmirler rink's emotional victory in Nagano, and Simon Whitfield’s triathlon triumph in Sydney.

But as I grew older, I realized I wasn't just watching athletes; I was witnessing the result of a system at work. Behind every Olympic moment was a local club, a dedicated volunteer board, and an army of coaches and officials who created the environment for that athlete to thrive. Those moments of national pride started in community gyms and playing fields, and I became fascinated with how we could create more of them.

The Experience Every Club Wants to Create

In high school, volleyball became my lifeblood. Our community came together to run our sporting events and cheer for our teams. That gym was where I learned the lessons every sport leader hopes to teach: teamwork, goal-setting, and resilience.

But it was a year of setbacks in college—injury, personal loss—that revealed the true power of a well-led organization. It was a caring athletic director who saw beyond the athlete and supported me as a person. He didn't just manage the program; he stewarded my experience. He is one of the main reasons I changed my major to sport management. I wanted to learn how to build organizations that could consistently deliver the kind of positive, life-changing impact I was so lucky to receive.

From the Olympics Back to the Community Rink

That desire to "give back" led me to the biggest stage: a fieldwork placement with the first Winter Youth Olympics in Innsbruck. Working within that massive, international organization, and later at the Sochi 2014 Olympics, was a masterclass in logistics, planning, and stakeholder management.

I saw that the magic of the Games wasn't magic at all; it was the result of clear communication, robust systems, and intentional governance. And I had a profound realization: the challenges faced by the leaders of a multi-billion dollar event were fundamentally the same as those faced by the volunteers in my own hometown—how to align people, manage resources, and deliver an exceptional experience. The only difference was the scale and the resources they had to work with.

Closing the Gap Between Passion and Progress

Sport has been the catalyst for my entire life. But today, the landscape has changed. Volunteers like my dad are now expected to be experts in governance, risk management, and athlete development. They are passionate leaders grappling with a challenging gap between their vision and their ability to translate that dedication into sustainable success.

That is why I created Spark Solutions. 
My mission is to provide the specialized resources and expert guidance that community sport leaders need to thrive. We work together to build the strong systems and clear strategies that turn volunteer passion into measurable, lasting impact. We channel the spirit of that small-town rink into building resilient, professional, and high-impact organizations that will leave a lasting legacy in the community.

If you're tired of the operational chaos and ready to build the thriving organization your community deserves, let's chat. I'm ready to get to work.