The peer mentor program is the heart of The Healing Place.

The men and women who choose to become a peer mentor after completing our long-term recovery program serve as role models for those who are newer in the program. Peer Mentors teach classes, monitor program progress, coordinate job assignments, and work one-on-one with individuals moving through the recovery process. Peer mentors demonstrate The Healing Place philosophy that the best solution is one alcoholic or addict reaching back to help another on the journey to recovery.

Since 2017, the Kentucky Bar Foundation has partnered with us to help provide funding for this important program. This year, the Foundation awarded The Healing Place with a $10,000 grant – their largest gift yet.

What makes the peer mentor program so important? Ask Richard and Elizabeth.

Richard

I spent the last 20 years of my life consuming alcohol and abusing drugs. I didn’t want to suffer anymore and continue hurting my family. I was living in Evansville and knew something needed to change. I had heard about The Healing Place and by the grace of my higher power, someone I had met only a few times told me that if I was serious about getting help, they would help me get to Louisville. This stranger’s act of kindness was God doing for me what I couldn’t do for myself.

The Healing Place introduced me to the 12 Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous and as I went through the program, I was finally able to understand my problem and believe in the solution. When I found out about the peer mentor program, I knew immediately that I wanted to be part of it. By working with other individuals in the peer mentor office and giving back to the guys newer in recovery, I can work through the everyday trials and tribulations of life and not have to get drunk or high to escape. Not only has this allowed me to live a life better than I knew existed, the process has been such an effective part of my recovery. Working as a peer mentor has taught me so many things about myself.

Elizabeth

Before I came to The Healing Place, I couldn’t stay sober long enough to keep me out of trouble with the law. I was arrested and I lost custody of my children. After spending seven months in jail, I was paroled to The Healing Place.

While in the program, my desire to stay sober and have a better life grew. The peer mentors at the time kept telling me to be the change I wanted to see. I wanted to give back to the house that saved my life and help change the lives of others like someone did for me, so I decided to become a peer mentor after I completed the program. The office has made me take my sobriety very seriously. As a peer mentor, I am able to keep my recovery right in front of my face and give hope to the younger sisters who are going through the same struggled I have faced… and to remember what can so easily happen to me if I don’t continue to put in the hard work to stay sober.

The peer mentor office has taught me how to set healthy boundaries with others, which is extremely important to me. It also allowed me to learn to lean on others and ask for help when I need it, while still being independent. I will forever be grateful for the experiences I have had at The Healing Place.

Thank you to the Kentucky Bar Foundation for helping make stories like Richard’s and Elizabeth’s possible.