From Adversity to Intergenerational Prosperity

Jul. 12, 2023 at 11:08 a.m. PDT

Steven Stark is a manifester who wholeheartedly applies his considerable energy to ideas and opportunities that lift up Indigenous people. It’s the kind of ethos that’s led him to wisdom and wealth.

But it wasn’t always so. Substance abuse, homelessness and displacement affected Stark from a young age.

At 26, he chose a different path: a life of equal parts service and serial entrepreneurship. Now, Stark offers a perspective on culture, commerce and life that few could imagine. It’s this full-circle journey that will be highlighted as part of his discussion with Squamish Nation hereditary chief Ian Campbell.

“It wasn't until I got clean at 26 that I began to find my way through the help of my community and especially our beloved Chief Ken Baird,” explains Stark. “When we rediscover our identity and take pride in our past, we can see our future defined not by our challenges but by the legacy of our ancestors – Canada’s “first entrepreneurs” – who built a thriving economy all the way up and down the coast and into the interior, in harmony with our values and environment.”

Stark firmly believes that his cultural confidence helped him overcome the challenges he faced in life – and it’s precisely that resilience that drives today’s Indigenous businesses towards success.

His pathway to entrepreneurship included a three-decade career in fishing, followed by the establishment of the Tsawwassen Shuttles Inc. and its four divisions: marine, bussing, street sweeping and water trucking.

Participants:

Steven Stark, President, Two World Transportation, and

Chief Ian Campbell, Event Chair, Indigenous Partnerships Success Showcase (moderator).