Substance abuse, addiction and addictive behaviors permeate our society in every neighborhood, in every community and at every socio-economic level, causing immeasurable damage that affects us all.
Increasingly, addiction is being acknowledged to be a chronic condition, and recovery is finding its way into the main stream of American life. While recovery-intensive events such as in- or out-patient treatment continue to play a critical initial role, and often help transition patients into Alcoholics Anonymous and other recovery programs for the long term, treatment is, by its nature, time-limited.
Recovery is a lifetime.
Happily, it can be a very good lifetime, and the key is peer support. Peer support is effective, and ultimately necessary for long-term recovery. It’s also low-cost, and peer support for recovery from a variety of addictive behaviors is available in the Upper Valley of Vermont and New Hampshire, today.
The Second Wind Foundation —previously known as the Upper Valley Substance Abuse Foundation— seeks to develop, improve and expand the availability of programs that advance recovery by making use of the unique experience of people who are in recovery themselves, in cooperation with a variety of recovery programs, as well as medical, social services and corrections professionals.
•People new to recovery enter a world they don’t have the skills to navigate, and changing addictive behavior requires ongoing effort, of a type many have never experienced before.
•Treatment can be crucial in helping people get started, but it is both time-limited and costly due to the need for highly educated supervision, trained staff, the bureaucracy necessary to meet the requirements of the insurers and government agencies that provide funding, and the cost of facilities.
•Various recovery programs are lifelines for the addicted, often in combination with outpatient programs, other social services, or corrections department supervision.
•Peer support programs can make the difference between success and failure by filling the gaps between meetings, work, family and the rest of life. These programs provide support and continuity for the newly recovering, offered by those people from whom they are most likely to accept help: their peers.
•Recovery Centers host meetings of a variety of recovery groups, and provide safe, sober environments between meetings, where those new to recovery can learn to enjoy sober living, from people who are on the same journey, acting largely in a volunteer capacity.
•Transitional Housing offers safe and secure, recovery-based, peer supported, places to live for those newly in recovery.
•Recovery Centers and Transitional Housing can be combined to provide around-the-clock safety, security and peer support for recovery in a way that’s effective, affordable and sustainable.
The Upper Valley Turning Point, the Second Wind Foundation's flagship program, offers a safe, substance-free environment populated by people in recovery who offer peer support seven days a week. Essentially a Recovery community center, the Turning Point functions as:
-a staffed drop-in center
-a meeting location for recovery groups
-a clearing house for information and referrals
-a place for substance-free recreation
-a resource for education and community support
"What we have at the Turning Point, where people are sober, they are our peers. They're people who can identify with us." -Linda
The Turning Point hosts a minimum of two peer support recovery meetings every day of the week. Programs holding meetings at the Turning Point currently include:
-Alcoholics Anonymous
-Narcotics Anonymous
-Overeaters Anonymous
-Codependents Anonymous
-Eating Disorders Anonymous
-Wit's End
-Making Change
Wit's End is for family members challenged by the substance abuse or addiction of an adolescent or young adult.
Making Change is a facilitated support group for high school-aged young people who are considering, or are committed to, recovery from alcohol or other drug dependency.
Our intention is to be inclusive, as we recognize that there are many paths to recovery. The Turning Point welcomes inquiries from recovery groups of all types.
Located off Route 5, just south of Norwich, Vermont, at exit 13 off Interstate 91. Open from 9:00 AM - 9:00PM, with weekend hours that can vary due to volunteer availability. For meeting times and general information click here.
Willow Grove is a supportive transitional residence for women in recovery. Established in the Upper Valley in 2004, Willow Grove offers safe, substance-free housing for residents who work or volunteer and pay modest rent for room and board.
The goal of the Willow Grove program is to support residents in strengthening the foundation of their recovery and moving toward independent, productive lives. Residents are assessed by a clinician and a care plan is recommended to each, which may include:
-case management
-12 step programs
-vocational planning
-counseling and psychiatric services
-domestic violence support
-medical, dental and legal services
-educational services
-parenting and other peer-support groups
-aftercare
Second Wind's vision for the future includes additional establishing additional Willow Grove locations, each convenient to a local Turning Point Center, in order to provide around-the-clock access to peer support for recovery. Transitional housing for men is on our agenda as well.
Education Programs:
Our Mascoma Project supports on-site counseling for uninsured students in the Mascoma Public School system.
Our Outreach Program offers speakers in long term recovery who visit area schools and offer first-person experience of life in recovery, presented to students in a non-judgmental manner, without teachers or parents present.
GED Tutoring is available to people seeking their High School equivalency diploma in anonymous setting.
Our Advocacy Program seeks at the local, State, regional and Federal levels to promote awareness of the chronic nature of addictive illness; the effectiveness, economies and continuity available through peer support, and to work toward parity for cultural, medical and social services support for recovery.
The Second Wind Foundation is a 501 (c) (3) non-profit foundation. The State of Vermont, United Way, a variety of charitable foundations and individual contributors help to support our operating budget.
We welcome tax-deductible contributions in any amount to help support our work.
