Fresh Start Addiction Treatment Program

The gentleman in the picture is James, a Fresh Start alumnus. At an Alumni Milestone celebration event earlier this year, he took three years of continuous sobriety. He mentioned the financial support that he was getting, highlighting its transformative impact on his life. He had previously experienced challenges completing education goals because of financial difficulty. After completing treatment at Fresh Start, James moved into Fresh Start’s post-treatment housing, served as vice chair of our alumni association, and began to realize his ambitions. While working part-time at our facility, he embarked on a journey in Nursing school. With the financial support of Fresh Start, made possible by donations from the community, he has completed his education program and has achieved his goal of becoming a Nurse. Now, living independently, he dedicates himself to the community, engaging as a full-time Nurse and case worker at the Adolescent Addiction Recovery Center (AARC), guiding young people through recovery, and contributing part-time at the South Health Campus Hospital. Your donations not only supported his journey but also helped foster his commitment to serving others.

 Since our last report in July of 2023, we have achieved the following:  

• 170 people actively participated in the intensive 90-day Phase 1 recovery program.   
• 82 people participated in Phase 2 of our program. Phase 2 is a 100-day transitional phase that builds on the work done in the initial 90-day program. 
• 65 people participated in Phase 3 which includes living in transitional housing units or returning to community with continued access to Outreach support and involvement with Fresh Start Alumni.
• 64 people participated in Phase 4, living in Fresh Start’s post-treatment housing.
• Note that the Phase 2, 3 and 4 numbers include clients living in community, in the main Fresh Start facilities or in our post-treatment housing.
• 16 people participated in our Family Healing Program that helps people who have someone in their life who is affected by addiction. The program helps people deal with the effects of their loved one’s addiction on themand learn how to live in recovery also. 

This incredible group of individuals from different backgrounds recently celebrated their Graditude (aka Graduation) and new journey in recovery. Some have gone back home to different parts of Alberta with continued support from our outreach team and others have moved into our post treatment housing. The connection to Fresh Start remains strong with alumni attending weekly meetings either  in person or online.

Fresh Start Recovery is experiencing a period of significant growth that will enable our organization to help even more people struggling with addiction. We are preparing to open a new 50-bed treatment facility in Lethbridge, adjacent to our existing 23-bed facility there. The new facility is one of several “Recovery Communities” being built by the Government of Alberta in different parts of the province. Fresh Start will operate the new facility as a men-only operation. We will be exploring the possibility of converting our existing 23-bed co-ed facility to serve women only.

Once the new facility is operational, Fresh Start will be able to serve 123 people at a time in 3 locations – an increase of over 68% from our current capacity.

While this is a significant increase in the scale of our operation, we remain steadfast in our commitment to serve every client in a way that is consistent with our vision statement: Every individual – Recovery for life.

Since our last report in March of 2023, we have achieved the following:  

• 129 people actively participated in the intensive 90-day Phase 1 recovery program.   
• 69 people participated in Phase 2 of our program. Phase 2 is a 100-day transitional phase that builds on the work done in the initial 90-day program. 
• 56 people participated in Phase 3 which includes living in transitional housing units or returning to community with continued access to Outreach support and involvement with Fresh Start Alumni.
• 34 people participated in Phase 4, living in Fresh Start’s post-treatment housing.
• Note that the Phase 2, 3 and 4 numbers include clients living in community, in the main Fresh Start facilities or in our post-treatment housing.
• 32 people participated in our Family Healing Program that helps people who have someone in their life who is affected by addiction. The program helps people deal with the effects of their loved one’s addiction on themand learn how to live in recovery also. 

Links:

• Powerful Client Gratitude Speech