{"id":180191,"date":"2022-12-30T13:05:17","date_gmt":"2022-12-30T21:05:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/eugeneweekly.com\/?p=188686"},"modified":"2022-12-30T13:05:17","modified_gmt":"2022-12-30T21:05:17","slug":"as-long-as-they-need-us","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/extra.eugeneweekly.com\/index.php\/2022\/12\/30\/as-long-as-they-need-us\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018As Long As They Need Us\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cWe\u2019re trying to help people save their lives,\u201d says Stephanie Cameron, founder and executive director of Restored Connections Peer Center, a new nonprofit that helps clients through peer mentorship and ways to recover from substance abuse. \u201cWe work with anybody who shows up, and then as long as they need us.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

To celebrate its integration into the Eugene community, Restored Connections Peer Center hosts its grand opening Jan. 2, featuring a ribbon-cutting ceremony, refreshments and an introduction to their services. The center is fully funded by Measure 110, also known as the \u201cDrug Decriminalization and Addiction Treatment Initiative.\u201d The measure funded new addiction recovery centers and community \u201cAccess to Care\u201d grants, financed with cannabis revenues.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

For those who have suffered from substance use disorder, \u201cstigma, shame and guilt are a huge part,\u201d Cameron says. The center provides peer mentors who can empathize with the struggles of the mentees through their shared experience. \u201cThe one common denominator is that we all identify as suffering from substance abuse disorder and recovering from that disorder,\u201d she says.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Hunter Nelms, administrative peer supervisor at Restored Connections, speaks to the importance of culturally specific peer mentors. \u201cRight now, we have a veteran on staff, so if a veteran wants to work with a veteran we have that,\u201d he says. \u201cWe have an LGBTQ representative that\u2019s going to work with us.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Nelms makes it clear that these peer mentors can work with anyone. \u201cBut if you want someone who identifies with your culture, we want to be able to meet that need,\u201d he says.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

According to Cameron, the value of a peer-run center cannot be overstated. \u201cWhen you have somebody who has lived experience, who has suffered from this disease, who can say, \u2018It’s OK, I understand, I too have walked this journey and I want to help you,\u2019\u201d she says, \u201cit is a power unlike any other.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The center provides individuals with much needed support, Cameron explains. \u201cIt’s very different when a child welfare worker tells you you\u2019re not a good parent, and if you don\u2019t do what she says, you\u2019ll never get your kids back,\u201d she says. \u201cIt’s very different when a probation officer tells you that everything you\u2019ve been doing is wrong, and you better act right or you\u2019re going back to jail.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Cameron affirms the positive impact that peer mentorship can have for an individual who\u2019s suffering. \u201cWhen you have somebody who says \u2018I remember what it was like when I was told that,\u2019\u201d she says. Or \u201c\u2018I remember how scary it was to not be able to stop using\u2019 \u2014\u00a0 it lowers the shame.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Cameron had identified a gap within Eugene social services that led her to create the peer center. \u201cRight now, Eugene\u2019s primary peer services are contracted or agency embedded peer services,\u201d she says, meaning that if you go to one of those peer treatment facilities, you\u2019re assigned a peer mentor, but \u201conce you graduate from that facility, you lose your peer mentor,\u201d she says.<\/span><\/p>\n

This sudden lack of support is an obstacle to recovery, Cameron says. \u201cWhat happens when you\u2019re in recovery is you’re still trying to live life,\u201d she says. \u201cYou\u2019re still going into weddings where they\u2019re serving alcohol, you\u2019re still dealing with the trauma that caused you to start using, you’re still reuniting with your children from child welfare.\u201d The center provides people with community, support and resources long after they leave a treatment facility.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cOur services are peer mentorship, supported employment, resources to housing, and connecting people with medical services,\u201d Cameron says. Restored Connections provides transportation, meetings, alternative recovery programs and inpatient, outpatient and detox treatments.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Cameron says she believes in community partnership. \u201cOne agency or service can\u2019t do it all,\u201d she says. The center often partners with complementary organizations to facilitate access to resources. Nelms says, \u201cWe partner with Laurel Hill and Emergence who have mental health providers on staff.\u201d As far as housing goes, he says that Restored Connections can refer people to places such as Oxford House and Housing Our Veterans.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

By using the supported employment service, peers can access resume assistance, practice interviews, connections to second chance employers, documentation assistance and help applying online. \u201cWe\u2019re here to support them,\u201d Nelms says. \u201cA job interview can be a scary thing when you\u2019ve spent the last 10 years houseless.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Nelms says he understands the importance of a supported employment service because he experienced the benefits himself. \u201cWhen I went to get a job at 38 years old, I had never had one,\u201d he says, \u201cbut I had someone that went with me to the interview, helped me get boots for the job that I got cutting steel.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Cameron explains that what makes Restored Connections unique is that it offers an independent peer service. \u201cYou don’t have to be working with somebody, you don’t have to be engaged in treatment,\u201d she says. The center helps people at any stage of recovery or who aren\u2019t in recovery at all.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

She uses the example of someone coming to the center who is actively using fentanyl and is seeking treatment. The peer mentors would then help the person access the treatment facility or service that best fits their needs. \u201cWe will work with their service providers to provide a holistic approach,\u201d she says. \u201cMaybe they get out of treatment \u2014 we’re still engaged with them.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Next, Cameron explains, the center would get them into recovery housing in order to feel more secure in their journey. At this stage, they might visit the center once a month. \u201cWe will work with them until they decide that formal services can end, and then they can access the drop-in center and be a part of this recovery community for the rest of their life,\u201d she says.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Nelms says he aims \u201cto help individuals find out what their recovery looks like.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe work with the houseless population and people who are actively using,\u201d Cameron says. \u201cWe\u2019re also working with people who have 15 years of recovery who are secure and maybe want to do a career change or give back to their community.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The goal is to create an environment of trust and support, without any judgment, Cameron explains. Restored Connections serves as a safe place people can go whenever they feel their recovery might be at risk.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe are here for the individual, regardless of what else is going on in their lives,\u201d she says.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The grand opening is 9 am Monday, Jan. 2, at 146 E. 12th Avenue. More information at RestoredConnections.org.<\/span><\/i><\/h6>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cWe\u2019re trying to help people save their lives,\u201d says Stephanie Cameron, founder and executive director of Restored Connections Peer Center, a new nonprofit that helps \u2026 Continue reading\u00a0\u2192<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":41,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,101,2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-180191","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-blog","category-ew-extra","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/extra.eugeneweekly.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/180191","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/extra.eugeneweekly.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/extra.eugeneweekly.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/extra.eugeneweekly.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/41"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/extra.eugeneweekly.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=180191"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/extra.eugeneweekly.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/180191\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/extra.eugeneweekly.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=180191"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/extra.eugeneweekly.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=180191"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/extra.eugeneweekly.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=180191"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}