Vernon Paralympian suing housing charity over $60,000 debt

A decorated Vernon Paralympian with three gold medals under her belt is taking legal action against a housing not-for-profit after it left her $59,000 in debt. Vernon resident Sonja Gaudet filed a Notice of Claim against the Attainable Housing and Development Society and its chief executive officer William Miller accusing the not-for-profit of reneging on a deal to finance the costs of converting her home to be wheelchair-friendly. According to the Dec. 13 Notice of Claim, Miller approached Gaudet in 2022 asking her to be part of a home adaption program run by the Attainable Housing and Development Society. The program covered renovation costs making places accessible. However, after Gaudet had the work done and paid for it herself, the charity only refunded $8,295, leaving her $59,107 in debt. "She's represented Canada, she's a Paralympian... (she's) faced adversity... throughout her life (and) got taken advantage of," Gaudet's lawyer Tess Guay told iNFOnews.ca. Gaudet has three Paralympic gold medals and is the world’s most decorated wheelchair curler. In 2020 she became the first wheelchair curler inducted into Canada's Sports Hall of Fame and this year was inducted into the World Curling Hall of Fame. Miller was the executive director of the Kamloops branch of Habitat for Humanity until the national organization cut ties with it in fall 2022 https://infotel.ca/inhome/national-organization-cuts-ties-with-kamloops-branch-of-habitat-for-humanity/it94539 . It cited a failure to meet "mandatory standards" at the Kamloops branch at the time. The court document didn't say that Attainable Housing and Development Society is a rebranded Habitat for Humanity, but the address on the court document, and one social media site, is the same as the now defunct Kamloops Habitat for Humanity Restore. The court said that after Miller approached her and told her about the renovation program they viewed potential properties together and met with a contractor. "Miller made representations to (Gaudet) that she qualified for the program, approved the accessible renovation plan, and assured her that the accessible renovation costs to her new home would be covered," the Notice of Claim read. Believing the renovations would be paid for, Gaudet bought a more expensive house than she'd originally budgeted for thinking the accessibility renovations would be covered. After buying the house the Paralympian hired a contractor to carry out the work. READ MORE: Construction on most difficult stretch of cycling trail from Sicamous to Osoyoos underway https://infotel.ca/newsitem/construction-on-most-difficult-stretch-of-cycling-trail-from-sicamous-to-osoyoos-underway/it107509 The court document said a memorandum "reconfirmed" the financial assistance and she was asked for a breakdown of costs which she supplied. "Relying on the representations and contract made by Miller to her detriment, (Gaudet) ended up personally funding the accessible renovations by draining her personal savings, running up her credit cards, and borrowing money from friends and institutions," the Notice of Claim read. Gaudet submitted receipts for reimbursement and kept the not-for-profit society updated on what was happening. The court document said Miller told her the 2022 funding cycle was reserved solely for her project. "The initial funding amount communicated by Miller to (Gaudet) shaped the scope of the project to ensure it aligned with the goal of creating a safe and independently accessible home environment," the court document said. On several occasions, Miller promised that the money would come soon and on one occasion texted to say the outstanding invoices would be reimbursed in January 2023. The court document said on Dec. 12, 2022, Miller texted to say the Society would be handing over around $50,000, but a week later sent a cheque for $8,295. For six months she continued to press for the money but didn't see a penny. In June 2023, Miller texted to say he couldn't give an exact date but it would be soon. READ MORE: Penticton fraudster convinced everyone she had cancer — including her husband https://infotel.ca/newsitem/penticton-fraudster-convinced-everyone-she-had-cancer-including-her-husband/it107437 A day later he texted and said "he would make every effort to look after her" but she never heard from him again. The Notice of Claim called the Society's statements "untrue, inaccurate, and misleading" and said they have caused stress, anxiety and financial hardship. Neither Miller nor the Attainable Housing and Development Society has filed a statement of defence and neither party responded to iNFOnews.ca's request for comment. None of the allegations have been proven in court. To contact a reporter for this story, email Ben Bulmer mailto:bbulmer@infonews.ca  or call (250) 309-5230 or email the editor mailto:news@infonews.ca . You can also submit photos, videos or news tips to the newsroom mailto:tips@infonews.ca  and be entered to win a monthly prize draw. We welcome your comments and opinions on our stories but play nice. We won't censor or delete comments unless they contain off-topic statements or links, unnecessary vulgarity, false facts, spam or obviously fake profiles. If you have any concerns about what you see in comments, email the editor in the link above. SUBSCRIBE to our awesome newsletter here https://infotel.ca/newsletter .