Sean, aka Struggle, spent decades trapped in homelessness, addiction and self-imposed isolation. He tamped down his emotions so that he couldn’t feel anything at all.
He came into the Sunrise Drop In Recovery Center but was filled with so much shame he kept to himself. Sunrise staff of Certified Peer Support Specialists came up to him, asked him how he was doing, offered him snacks, coffee and support. That started a trajectory that changed his life.
Karen Byers spent 10 years in prison for drug trafficking and years in addiction. Upon release, she was determined to make a better life for herself and her family. She got a job where she was consistently promoted. But it wasn’t easy. She faced temptation, hardship and health issues.
She connected with Sunrise’s Certified Peer Support Specialist, Kelsey Moore, who talked Karen through the tough times, provided basic need resources, and helped her believe in herself so she could keep moving forward.
Sue Polston spent years struggling with the aftermath of trauma that led her to substance use, incarceration and instability.
Upon learning about peer support, she knew that was the path she wanted to take in her life. Within a few years in her recovery, she became the Executive Director of Sunrise Community for Recovery and Wellness, where she has led the organization from a two-person staff to now employing more than 70 Certified Peer Support Specialists. Now celebrating 12 years in recovery, Sue is giving to her community what she desperately needed at one time.
Lauren Garvie was trapped in a cycle of addiction, incarceration, and hopelessness. She had lost all belief in herself and her worth, and couldn’t imagine what recovery might even look like. But everything began to change during her 41st stay at the Buncombe County Detention Center when she met Char, a Certified Peer Support Specialist from Sunrise who was leading a support group.
Lauren never went back to jail. Today, she is a powerful and inspiring force of hope for others who, like she once did, feel weighed down by despair, stigma, and shame.
Amy Roberts overcame generational substance use and trauma with determination and resilience, but when it came time to find stable employment to support her two young girls, she could not rise far above minimum wage.
She had moved up the ranks to become manager at a local Taco Bell, but the work and pay was not fulfilling her intelligence and drive. She was offered a position at Sunrise Community for Recovery and Wellness, where she is thriving and living up to her potential.
Frankie woke up in a hospital with nothing to his name except a paper hospital gown. Alone and thousands of miles from home, an act of kindness inspired him to change his life from one of struggle and addiction to recovery and hope.
He learned about Peer Support and decided he wanted to be a force of hope for others. He is now an integral member of Sunrise’s team, providing hope, boundaries and shared lived experience with our community of peers at our Drop In Community Center.
Josh and Destiny are a couple who overcame addiction, family separation, homelessness, trauma, and incarceration to come back together stronger and more resilient with the support from Sunrise’s staff of Certified Peer Support Specialists.
Their story is one of recovery, personal growth, and giving back to others who are going through the struggles they once faced.
Jeremy met Sunrise MAT Coordinator Johnna Bock while he was incarcerated at the Buncombe County Detention Center. For most of his life, he struggled with trauma and addiction which led to isolation and incarceration.
Upon his release, Johnna and Jeremy worked together to help him break the cycles of addiction and incarceration. His story is filled with hard work, perseverance and an unwillingness to give up hope.