Stories of Impact
In Search of the Antidote
It was mid-morning when she pulled up to the garden - right at the moment that the late July morning was hinting at just how hot it would be. The sounds of children laughing on the playground mingled with the whizzing of cars as they passed by on 9th street. We are at the community gardens behind the UCC Church in Longmont.
Annie popped out of her car with a smile and a wave. Her petite frame bounded to the plot with an energy that belied her size. Not losing a moment, she began explaining what was growing both in her plot and the neighboring plots. “I have this problem in all aspects of my life, that I compare myself to others, and this person has the biggest butternut squashes while mine are just small and green,” she lamented. Annie pointed out the peppers and recounted the way one plot was so well planned that it has magically revealed more plants throughout the season. “It's been a great community, we all step in to care for the other spaces if we notice something awry.”
Annie is receiving a stipend through The Reentry Initiative to care for the garden plot. She enjoys the daily task and loves bringing in the harvest to share with others on the road to recovery. Annie has a variety of experiences in life: a preschool teacher; a mom and wife; an unhoused drug addict. Now sober for over a year, Annie is pulling the pieces of her life back together.
“When you first get sober, you kinda realize just how unreliable you have been. It comes with the territory. So having a garden, taking care of the lives of so many vulnerable little plants, really starts to change you. These little guys depend on me to live! In turn I get to share the harvest with others.” Annie has two people to help her, if they show up. They too, are working their way through recovery and sometimes they just don’t show up. Still Annie holds them with care, she knows it was only the unconditional love and support from family and friends that helped her maintain a path of recovery.
“Ya know, I don’t want them to tell me they are okay if they are not okay. I’d rather they tell me they are laying in a ditch, and if so, I will come lay in the ditch with them,” Annie takes a slightly longer pause before changing the subject to squash blossoms.
Annie befriended her helpers at a recovery group at The Reentry Initiative. The ‘Wellness Recovery Action Planning’ or WRAP group, is based on a system to incorporate wellness tools and strategies into one’s life. Katya Slivinskaya, a therapist and wellness coach at The Reentry Initiative, says the WRAP group among other therapeutic groups promote prosocial activities, which aid recovery.
“Emerging research is showing that connection is the antidote to addiction, so at The Reentry Initiative, we are working to create deeper connections in our groups as well as out in the community,” Slivinskaya said.
The Reentry Initiative offers enrolled clients the opportunity to engage in therapeutic activities that are considered non-traditional - therapeutic singing, equine coaching, acupuncture, cathartic dance, free access to the Longmont Rec Center, and holistic life skills classes including healthy relationships, boundaries, and emotional intelligence with in-house staff and partnering community experts. After growing up on a farm, Annie wanted to manage the garden plot as part of her recovery action plan.
Annie’s next steps include getting certifications in accu-detox and becoming a Peer Mentor so she can better support those recovering from addiction and involvement with the justice system. The experience of having recovered uniquely qualifies her to make changes in individual lives, which has a resounding effect back on the community. She already has big plans for next year’s garden. In fact, she wants to have two plots - one for vegetables and one for herbs to make a detox tea bar at The Reentry Initiative to help others on their path.