uh..yeah, I wouldn’t be at my best doing that job. I can only smile and be cheery one time a day whilst answering a phone. The rest of the time it’s: “This is Bobby”. If they want to talk, they talk. If they hang up, good. I do extremely well eye to eye.though.
Congrats! So how was the training...valuable & informative, just "check-the-box," or somewhere in between?
After signing up and paying, I was given 120 days to complete the program. On the 118th day, I began it, and stayed up all night with it, slept for a few hours, then completed the second part. Despite my usual procrastination, it wasn't a cinch. There was some work involved, including a test.
Addiction by itself isn’t an easy subject. I wish more institutions (such as rescue missions) that deal with it had people on staff that had to study and be tested. You’ve completed an exceptional endeavor!
Pir2Peer just received a federal grant to pay for the purchase and renovation of a building in neighboring Medway, Maine. It's a large building built onto a Quonset hut structure that originally belonged to the Disabled American Veterans (DAV). The DAV closed about ten years ago, after which it was empty for a couple of years, but has been a gunshop for the past few years. The building is large enough for plenty of office, meeting, and counseling space, as well as having an event area and commercial kitchen, so they could probably lease that part of the building out for events from time to time, as well as holding their own. It also sits on 4-5 acres of land, so there's more parking space and room for expansions. Medway is also closer to I-95, so that might open the Center to a larger service area.
That's very encouraging. I told you of the place in Falls Church (The Unity Club)that helped me quit drinking beginning in 1990 (it's still there), but all we had were 12 Step Meetings. There were no other social services support, which means it was mostly self-managing (just like all 12 Step Meetings.) I gotta think there's lots more behind-the-scenes and facility coordination now, in addition to the client-facing support. I guess these are "good problems." Good for Michelle and you (and everyone else) for doing this. I know folks in my region who run non-profits that each have their specialty (life-disaster recovery stuff is big), but it sounds like Pir2Peer established a presence and then became more broadly community-needs driven than "this is our single-service offering." I would think that such a broad range of services really opens up fundraising efforts, since it meets so many different needs...and it really lends itself to "community participation" on so many levels. That cuts the stigma of a pure recovery center big time.
There is, I suppose, a danger of widening a focus so much that the essential mission is lost, but recovery involves a great deal beyond sobriety or abstinence. If someone isn't happy in sobriety, it isn't likely to last, so some other services are fitting. Food and clothing are donated so it's not an expense to Pir2Peer, but the availability helps the organization maintain a community presence and to gain community support. Initially, there was a concern among some that a recovery center would bring "drug addicts" and "alcoholics" into the area, but these didn't recognize the fact that they were already here.
That's kind of where my mind went...and then to the other side of the coin, where lack of resources might lead to the downward spiral. The variety of services will help bring in more folks to get to know "those people" without even realizing it. And when you're in recovery, it's easy to isolate in the comfort of the groups, but that can get stale. It will be nice to have a variety of activities going on under the same roof. I don't think serving the community in such a broad way is fragmented in the least. I think it's a great model. And you know that folks are gonna bring other needs to your doorstep, especially if the area is lacking in resources (I've experienced it here many times, although it did help us expand our network as we sought help for them.) It's actually an interesting position for you to be in, since other non-profits only do "their thing," so at best might try to find a helping agency to meet the need. You folks will actually have a decision to make.
This is our last day at the Millinocket location. This morning, we will be closing on a much larger building in Medway, which is nearer the center of our service area. We've outgrown the Millinocket building and this is an opportunity to own our own building, rather than leasing. I am covering here in Millinocket while the closing is taking place in Medway.
This is so true, truer words were never spoken. I have 13 grown grandkids and 2 ofr them ruined their lives with drugs. Wonderful women who take time to give of themselves.
We've moved into the new (to us) building, although there is still a lot to be arranged or put away. This is the event space, which is the Quonset hut part of the building. It's pretty slow here today, though, but that's typical for a Friday afternoon. That's also okay with me because I am here by my lonesome this afternoon. Oh, by the way, thanks, everyone. A federal grant is going to pay for the building plus some left over for renovations. In front of the event space are two sizable offices on each side of a foyer. Behind the event space is a commercial kitchen, a few utility rooms, a couple of bathrooms, and a meeting room that is ideal for mutual-support-type meetings, as well as private discussions.
I'm doing eight hours at Pir2Peer today because everyone is on vacation, and my wife is going to attend some Gold Star Mothers function, I think. She told me, but I don't remember. It's not that I don't listen but, since the salient point was that she wasn't going to be here and needed me to cover, where she was going wasn't worth storing in my brain. Fridays are usually pretty slow at Pir2Peer, so I'll probably be in and out of the forum a lot. I have a (paid) blog post to write, however.