Written by Dan Marcinkowski at the High River Times
https://www.highrivertimes.com/news/local-news/great-food-at-the-narrow-road-creperie-co
The newly opened Narrow Road Creperie & Co located on 130 – 3rd Ave SE, has some amazing and great tasting crepes on their menu. Open 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day except on Sundays, the Creperie offers multiple crepes fitting for breakfast or lunch, for those wanting something savory or something sweet. The Creperie also serves salads, soup, fruits, and coffee. From first-hand experience, the service and food was great and it is highly recommended to go have breakfast or lunch or just come by for a coffee.
The Narrow Road Creperie & Co. is an extension of the Narrow Road Home and all the women working in the Creperie have been treated or continue to heal at the Narrow Road Home, which is a women’s healing house of recovery (from addictions like drugs and alcohol) for women over 18-years-old.
A little history about the Narrow Road Home…
Kim Engbrecht, Founder and Executive/Director of Narrow Road Home came up with the idea for the place of healing for women after some personal things had happened in her life.
“My sister and best friend both died from alcoholism,” she said.
“That got me going on the path that led me to work as a volunteer interventionist, as well as going to school studying social work.”
“I’ve kind of always had my foot involved in something with helping women. Mostly it was on my own, where I would open my doors and take on young women who were struggling.”
Engbrecht had one girl that was staying with her from the States and they both believed that she needed more help than Engbrecht could provide at the time.
“I started calling around to organizations and churches, but there were long wait-lists or costs were too high,” she said.
“We couldn’t wait because six months down the road, she probably wouldn’t be alive.”
“This was kind of my light bulb moment where I thought I could make a change. I thought I have this huge house that already lends itself to being a treatment facility and then began my journey in May 2014 to start canvassing the community and doing my due diligence to get this house zoned.”
Vist the Narrow Road Creperie in High River Alberta
Many people have stigma about addictions, but Engbrecht also received a lot of support early on and High River Town Council was a 100 per cent with her.
“We showed them that we would be supervising these girls 24 hours a day,” she said.
Once it got going on Dec. 2 2014, the Narrow Road Home filled up within a month.
“We’re not a religious organization, but we believe in that spirituality side of turning it over to God and having him kind of running the house,” said Engbrecht.
The Narrow Road Home is a safe haven for women that could have long term transitional healing.
“Rather than the 30-days standard, we wanted to start somewhere from crisis, to giving back, to then watching here in the Creperie, to becoming your own person and launching people into their business,” said Engbrecht.
The Narrow Road Home has helped these women a lot. Just recently one woman received her GED for the first time, and they have women that are in University or College getting their degrees. There are two transition homes as well.
“It’s like we trying to build a support village,” said Engbrecht.
The organization is not a non for profit one.
“We decided not go down this route at this time, because of a lack of resources, and the fact that we do want women to pay some fees even if it is only a couple $100’s,” said Engbrecht.
“Even though we are a private treatment centre, we take women regardless of their financial picture.”“The story is so powerful, some of these girls went from being drug dealers or being alcoholics and they now have literary built this place and run it,” said Engbrecht.
The Creperie will help raise money for the organization and help offset fees and also scholarship women who can’t afford treatment.
