September 4, 2026
In this week’s Steve’s Reflections, I had the opportunity to sit down with Trent Burke, the owner of Altitude Window Cleaning.
Trent and I talked about his business, his family, and running….but our conversation was also about something much bigger.
When Trent was young, he experienced homelessness. During that time in his life, he relied on organizations and people in the community to provide some of the parenting, guidance and life supports that otherwise would have come from family.
The most powerful part of our conversation wasn’t what Trent has accomplished. It was what his story asks us to consider about the way we see people experiencing homelessness.
It is easy to look at someone who is struggling and see the circumstances: homelessness, poverty, addiction, mental health challenges, unemployment or whatever else may be visible in that moment.
But behind those circumstances is a person.
Someone’s son or daughter. Someone’s brother or sister. Someone’s parent. Someone’s friend.
Someone with abilities, dreams, strengths and potential that may not be visible to us at that particular point in their life.
Being with Trent always reminds me of so many people I’ve seen in my career who’ve overcome such tremendous challenges to move forward successfully. It’s also reminded me of the importance of seeing the humanity and opportunity within the person, rather than defining the person by the circumstances they are experiencing.
And it left me with a question:
If you had encountered Trent when he was experiencing homelessness, would you have seen the potential that was there?
Would you have imagined that the young person in front of you might one day build a business, employ others and become a successful member of our community?
Or would you have simply seen someone who was homeless?
That question matters—not just because of Trent’s story, but because there are thousands of people in our community whose potential may be hidden behind the circumstances they are experiencing today.
Our response to homelessness needs to be about more than providing shelter and managing crises. It needs to be about seeing people, believing in people and creating opportunities for people to rebuild their lives.
Because we never really know who is standing in front of us.
Maybe the next Trent Burke is someone we are looking at today—and we just haven’t learned to see the opportunity yet.
I hope you’ll take a few minutes to hear Trent’s story and consider what it might change about the way you see homelessness and our community’s need to resolve this crisis.
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A great profile, Steve. And a thank-you to Trent for his courage and vulnerability.