Success Stories

Nick Beach

I have almost eight years of recovery time. The resources available now [like Mountain Maryland Forward] weren’t available ten years ago. I just didn’t know what was out there. It was all kind of new to me. I was unaware of…what peers were.

I got hired on with the state’s attorney’s office for a peer recovery role, but I actually work with the drug court program. At the time there was really no mention of certification, and I had no clue about anything. I thought I was going to come in and talk about my lived experiences, help people find stuff in the community, and I was really kind of clueless as to what the peer role looked like. I started my certification process [through MMF]…after I’d been hired. I was working as a peer, but not yet certified or going through those steps. My boss didn’t want to throw me out to the wolves without any training.

As a peer, participants see someone with eight years clean…and realize their life isn’t over. They can do good things if they get clean and stay the course. The drug court program shows people that they can change their lives if they do the work…many doors open. The state’s attorneys, lawyers, and judges can be references for jobs. When participants first enter the program, they don’t see it that way, but after a few weeks, they do.

Ten years ago, my thoughts on police, lawyers, and the state’s attorney weren’t positive. Now, participants may come in a little hot, but as they learn the program, they see a different side of the system, and the care in the program is one of the biggest things for me. Judges and lawyers genuinely care about each individual, which I never expected. It’s a whole different perspective, and the amount of change affects participants, their families, and the community.

I love my [peer] role. It’s going to push me to further my education or eventually move up or somewhere else. I can sit evenly with the people I’m working with, as opposed to having a power [im]balance like my boss might have. It’s pretty effective. I can only imagine what it would have been like to have someone walk me through things when I was going through my journey.

Sean

My main introduction with Mountain Maryland Forward (MMF) was the original CCAR peer recovery specialist training. Early in my recovery, I decided that I wanted to do peer support. It was something that I was very interested in. I’ve always done community service my whole life. Being in the country, it’s kind of what I did. But I didn’t really have an idea where or how to get started. That’s when I got directed to Stephanie Hutter-Thomas and Mountain Maryland Forward. I signed up and took the first round of classes with her. That pretty much got me my start as a peer.

She also helped me in other ways. I actually took the training four times. I took it twice on my own, and then Stephanie even offered for me to be a teacher aide. I would just sit in the courses and try to draw conversation out, plant some seeds for questions and stuff. That was basically how I got started, through MMF. Even after the class, the continued support has been amazing. I’ve been working with Steph and MMF for two to three years.

I work at Baltimore Crisis Response in Garrett County now. Basically, I had five years dealing with bone disease and recovery, and five years later I finally had a good bit of education and was ready to get back to work. I got in, did my application, and [Stephanie] was also my reference. It was a bit of a struggle because of government funding, but they found a position. We’re trying to do 24/7 in Garrett County, which we have already in Allegany. I’m on the weekend shift and work evenings through the week. It’s what I need—the connections, the people—to get started. Hopefully, my certification hours will be completed very soon.

When you’re trying to [get supervised peer recovery support time] on your own, it’s one hour here, one hour there. You might get two hours a week if you’re lucky. So, 500 hours is a lot of hours when there is very little to do in Garrett County to accomplish those hours.

Every step forward, we take care of the people behind us too, so they have an easier time than we did. We’re always thinking about the next thing. These programs and the funding are never forever. We gotta be a few steps ahead, thinking where to get funding next and what gaps there are to fill.

I have a resource page on Facebook called Out Loud Recovery Garrett County. It’s Facebook posts, social media posts—everything from churches, recovery, food, shelter, warm, dry, fed—community resources, peer resources, recovery events—I funnel everything I can find. I’ve lived in Garrett County my whole life, my family since 1862. I know so many people in my community, which was a blessing during the five years I was down with bone disease and recovery. Now I give back.

Carol Adkins

[Mountain Maryland Forward] gave me a second chance, regardless of my background, regardless of my past, and gave me that opportunity to overcome challenges in my own personal mindset, my own personal life, and to rise above all of that. When I talk to people about MMF, that’s kind of what I say. It’s like a second chance and a career path that you think you don’t deserve, but in all honesty, this place will show you, you do.

If you would have asked me two years ago, “Do you see yourself ever working a career?” I would have told you no. I would work fast food my entire life. Nobody’s gonna look at my background, know my past, and give me a second chance in life to have a career.

Now, I can tell you, I could see myself being anything I set my mind to being, regardless of anything or how anybody would look at me, just because Stephanie gave me that chance. She helped me with the MMF program, with my CPRS stuff, and now she’s helped me to overcome challenges in my job as well.

I love the fact that we want to support these [Archway] residents in a way that shows them that they’re not outcasts, like the world tries to put on them stigma-wise. That they have the opportunity to re-enter society the way that they deserve to re-enter—kind of like a fresh start. We do stress groups to help them learn how to relieve stress, and to fill out applications. If they want to go back to school, we try to empower them to do that as well. The idea of what we’re trying to do with the residents is probably my favorite part, but I definitely love spending time with my residents.

I want to do peer recovery for not just substance abuse, but mental health as well. I definitely believe that God was calling me into a counseling-type path.