What we do

Peer support

Our team is made up of people who have lived through addiction and recovery. We support people before treatment, during treatment and after they leave.

Before treatment, while you wait for a bed:

• We stay in touch so the wait does not become the end of the road.
• We help you replace lost ID. Most treatment programs need a valid Ontario health card.
• We help with food and the basics.
• We help you get ready for admission, including the days you need to be sober before you go in.
• We go with you to your assessment and to admission.

During treatment, by arrangement with the program's staff:

• Peer visits.
• Income: Ontario Works, the Ontario Disability Support Program, and filing taxes so benefits start.
• Housing applications, including the City of Kingston's Coordinated Access list.
• Work: a resume, a job search, training.
• Referrals to the right agencies.

After treatment:

• Follow-up calls and visits.
• Recovery meetings and a sponsor, on whichever pathway fits you.
• Finding a place to live, and keeping it.
• Keeping income, food and work in place.
• A quick way back to support, or to detox, after a return to use.

The four worries

People in early recovery carry four questions: Where will I live? Where will money come from? Where will I eat? How will I survive? We take those on, so people can focus on recovery.

What peer support is not

Peer support is not counselling. We do not give medical advice or advice about medication. In a treatment program, the program's clinical team leads treatment. We work alongside them.

Going with people

A lot of the system is paperwork. Replacing ID, applying for income, registering with agencies, getting on housing lists. Doing it alone, in early recovery, is hard.

We go with people. To St. Vincent de Paul for meals, clothing and household items. To Service Ontario for a health card. To Ontario Works. To recovery meetings, the first time and the second time.

The house

We are planning a small, short-term home in Kingston. Four or five bedrooms and a shared kitchen. It is for people who have finished detox and are waiting for a treatment bed.

A stay is for staying clean, building community, getting your papers and income in order, and getting to treatment ready. People leave for treatment, not back to the street.

Status: we are seeking funding and a house. The house is not open, and we cannot take referrals for it yet. We will say so here when that changes.

Giving back

Part of recovery is being useful to other people. Residents and clients can take on roles if they want to: welcoming new arrivals, going with someone to their first meeting, food rescue runs, helping at a meal program.

These roles are always optional. They are never a condition of support, of a bed, or of anything else.