Building a new recovery coach program

Building a new recovery coach program

BY SUE DALEY
THE SENTINEL • THURSDAY, JANUARY 27, 2022

[…] In 2021, I was hired by the Western Massachusetts Training Consortium to serve as the first recovery coach supervisor for the Ware Regional Recovery Center. It is exciting to be helping to build a new recovery coach program in the Quaboag Hills Region. When I was first in recovery, 21 years ago, I did not have the option of a recovery coach, who is a peer who helps another overcome obstacles to sobriety. We undergo training and extensive supervision.

I choose to do this because I have been through my own experiences in recovery, and I know that there are many obstacles and consequences due to substance use. I want to be there for someone “where they are,” and help them make positive choices that meet their unique needs and circumstances. Some people opt for 12-step programs or seek spiritual guidance. Others choose a multi-service approach that might include clinical, spiritual and peer supports. Regardless, my goal is to help each person build confidence and self-esteem and to move past whatever shame they may feel. They may choose to work with me for a few weeks or months, or maybe a year. Every circumstance is different. Sometimes, I just help someone connect with basic necessities, and I am with them to learn new skills and to laugh together along the way. Recovery is challenging, and it’s important to laugh. […] It is very fulfilling to see a recoveree feel empowered to move forward and connected to their community in a positive way.

We have made a solid start in the Quaboag Region, and I am excited about what we can provide the community in 2022.

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Jan 5: Same Day Hiring Event with Home & Community Connections

Come join Home & Community Connections for their Same Day Hiring Event on January 5th! We’ll be at 187 High St, Suite 202, in Holyoke from 10 AM to 2 PM. All levels of experience are welcome, with sign on bonuses for the following open positions!

Program Manager positions: $1,000 after 60 days
Program Supervisor positions: $750 after 60 days
Support Specialist positions: $500 after 30 days

We look forward to seeing you there!

OnBoard Matching Event draws organizations, individuals (photos)

Updated: Dec. 08, 2021, 6:57 a.m. | Published: Dec. 08, 2021, 6:57 a.m.
By The Republican Newsroom

SPRINGFIELD — The 2021 OnBoard Matching Event took place Tuesday, Dec. 7, at Valley Venture Mentors at 276 Bridge St.

OnBoard, which merged last month with United Way of Pioneer Valley, connects talented individuals with organizations seeking to increase diversity on their boards and committees.

United Way of Pioneer Valley helps matches connect, and offers training and mentoring support, to help ensure matches don’t just happen, but become fruitful partnerships.

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Noted author to speak about having opioid-addicted family members

Noted author to speak about having opioid-addicted family members

[…] Jarrett J. Krosoczka, award-winning author of the young readers’ graphic novel “Hey, Kiddo,” knows well what it is to live with a parent’s addiction. The Hampshire HOPE Opioid Prevention Coalition and related organizations are presenting a virtual event featuring Krosoczka talking about growing up with a heroin-addicted mother and an absent birth father.

The December 14 event is free and open to all and will be presented from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. Advance registration is required so a Zoom link can be emailed in advance of the presentation. The necessary registration form is available at: www.hampshirehope.org.

[…]

Hampshire HOPE is a regional opioid prevention coalition based in the Northampton Health Department. Joining Hampshire HOPE in presenting Krosoczka are the Northwestern District Attorney’s Office, the Northampton Recovery Center, the South Hadley Drug and Alcohol Prevention Coalition, the Northampton Prevention Coalition, the SPIFFY coalition and the Quaboag Hills Substance Use Alliance.

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Noted author to speak about having opioid-addicted family members

Northampton Recovery Center fighting addiction with unique approach

by: 

Posted Updated: 

NORTHAMPTON, Mass. (WWLP) – […] Drug addiction is very much an issue locally and across the state. The Northampton Recovery Center (NRC) is a peer driven community, just last month celebrating five years in Northampton.

There is a life after addiction. That’s what’s really important. The National Institute on Drug Abuse has reported large increases of in drug use since the beginning of the pandemic. Across the Commonwealth, the opioid related overdose death rate went up one percent in the first nine months of 2021.

The NRC is trying to change these statistics in western Massachusetts, with a peer to peer approach. Outreach Coordinator of NRC, Trevor Dayton, told 22News, “Peer to peer recovery embraces the community aspect of, embraces the fellowship aspect of recovery. Everything that happens here, happens because a community member wanted it to happen.”

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The Consortium Announces New Development Director

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Kristel Applebee
Western Massachusetts Training Consortium
(413) 536-2401 x3041
[email protected]

The Consortium Announces New Development Director

Terrie Thompson is the Consortium’s New Director of Development

HOLYOKE, MA November 9, 2021 – The Consortium is excited to announce it has a new Director of Development, A. Terrie Thompson.

Terrie Thompson has joined the Consortium as the Director of Development with over 16 years of advocacy experience. She has worked in various capacities of service within corporate settings, non-profits, and human services in the Western Massachusetts area, including the cities of Springfield and Holyoke. She has most recently worked with the Springfield Department of Health and Human Services in a groundbreaking community engagement project for the local Springfield Community through the Office of Problem Gambling Prevention. In her new role as Director of Development, she will utilize her extensive advocacy and community engagement experience to lead the Consortium’s development efforts and support innovative community engagement to generate a balance of funding streams and sustain the organization’s partner communities in the long term. Throughout her career Terrie has been committed to advocating and working closely with marginalized communities to create social equity, inclusion, exercise personal choice, and help provide equal access to resources in the larger community. She looks forward to working collaboratively with the Consortium’s programs and communities.

In all areas of Terrie’s career, she has practiced honoring the unique experiences and needs of the communities she serves. Her approach helps those individuals and groups to be empowered by their own experiences so they may thrive where they live, work, eat, and play in a meaningful wayHer work continues to reflect her passionate commitment to social justice, equity, and community inclusion. She intimately understands the importance of this type of community work because of her own experiences with her son with disabilities, which has further fueled her passion for advocacy and equity…social justice.

The Consortium, founded in 1975, is a learning organization committed to creating conditions in which people who have faced marginalization, oppression, or otherwise felt invisible are better able to pursue their dreams and strengthen communities through voice, choice, and inclusion. This is supported by an organizational commitment to address systems of oppression and work toward undoing the harms they have caused. To learn more, visit their website at http://wmtcinfo.org/.