Rocky Craig Celebrates 25 years with Coast Mental Health

Coast Mental Health celebrates Rocky Craig, Senior Building Operator, for 25 years of dedicated service. Over the years, he has seen first hand the changes and growth Coast has experienced. 

In 1984 Rocky was the lead singer for the band Rockabilly Kings and was on a never-ending road trip playing the bars and clubs in BC, Alberta and beyond.  That summer after spending years on the road and living out of a suitcase he decided to quit the road and stay home in Vancouver and look for a different type of employment. 

So back in Vancouver, Rocky did not know exactly what his next move would be.  Out of the blue a friend mentioned that a temporary position was available to manage an apartment block for Coast Foundation Society.  Rocky applied and was hired for the position. 

Two weeks later Rocky was offered yet another position in a larger building. “At first, Coast found me and everything just fell into place,” says Rocky, “but when the position of Resident Manager at Coastview was officially posted, my supervisor pleased with my job performance suggested I apply. It was at that point that I picked Coast.”  
 
During this 25 year period Rocky held the positions of Non Resident Manager, Rehabilitation Manager, Resident Manager and Building Operator.  Then his supervisor Gregg James recognized his strengths of interacting with people from all walks of life and offered him his current position of Senior Building Operator, supervising a team of five full time Building Operators, two Casuals and numerous Temporary Employment Programs for clients.  These role changes are what kept him interested and challenged here at Coast.

"I think it’s the joy that I derived working with the clients that kept me here at Coast. I learned so much about diverse lives and backgrounds. It is amazing seeing first hand that positive changes happen. Also I get to interact with all the great staff at Coast Mental Health and find it be a very rewarding experience." says Rocky.

When asked if Rocky had any plans to move on, he said "After being with Coast for 25 years, I have never seen the type of growth that Coast is experiencing right now. I think there are many exciting things coming down the road."