Partners

PARTNERS is a community of women whose shared objective is to live drug-free lives. It is estimated that 80% of drug and alcohol abusing women have been sexually violated and are likely to have not received support or treatment. This 5-day a week, 6-12 month program teaches women to inhabit their bodies and their lives without emotional numbing.

The Partners approach is therapy-based and treats substance abuse as a symptom of poor coping skills, emotional distress and unhealthy relationships.

Sherry's Story

At 26, Sherry looked ten years older. Four children and two disastrous relationships later, her only "coping skill" was cocaine. The risk of permanently losing her children to state care forced her into our Partners Program. She learned that she was not alone in having skipped childhood to raise younger siblings and looking for love in all the wrong places -- only to find herself with four children to raise, no GED, no job skills, no friends and no hope.

In Partners, Sherry learned to live in a "Healthy World" with the support of her counselors and peers. She learned to take small risks and small steps towards a future of her own choice. She dared to dream and dared to believe. At her graduation, she thanked her Partners "sisterhood" for not letting her give up on herself and lovingly confronting her when she was ready to give up on herself.

For the past five years, Partners has received major funding from the Metro Regional Board of the Division of Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities and Addictive Diseases. The program is certified by the Office of Regulatory Services and received CARF accreditation in October 2004.