Safe Harbor: Resilience and Social Connection Support Recovery
For Immediate Release Please
Release Date: May 14, 2021
Program Contact: Katie Sell, katie.sell@healthyacadia.org or (207) 255-3741
Media Contact: Tracey Carlson, tracey@healthyacadia.org or (207) 667-7171 Ext. 112
Safe Harbor: Resilience and Social Connection Support Recovery
Machias. On the unseasonably chilly morning of Saturday, May 8, fourteen volunteers gathered at Safe Harbor Recovery Home for Women and Children to assemble outdoor play equipment in the fenced backyard of the residence. The group, which included Safe Harbor residents, Washington County Drug Court participants and alumni, AmeriCorps / Maine RecoveryCorps members, area residents, Healthy Acadia staff, and family members spent the day cleaning up the play area and assembling a play and swing set and playhouse generously donated by the Community Caring Collaborative for use by families residing at Safe Harbor. The Collaborative also treated the volunteers to a delicious lunch from Angie’s Comfort Kitchen.
Safe Harbor is a place for women to live and grow with their children in a safe, supportive, affordable living environment while seeking recovery from substance use disorder. The Program is the result of a collaborative effort between Healthy Acadia, Downeast Community Partners, Aroostook Mental Health Center, and the Community Caring Collaborative. In addition to connecting residents to recovery resources and supports, the organizations collaborate and partner with other community organizations to provide additional opportunities for residents to develop increased resilience and foster strong social connections.
Additional projects in progress at Safe Harbor include the installation of raised garden beds. Healthy Acadia staff and AmeriCorps RecoveryCorps service members are working together with Safe Harbor residents to build and fill the garden beds with vegetable and flower seeds and seedlings. Earlier this spring, residents and staff enthusiastically started seeds indoors in preparation for transplanting, and are learning how to tend and harvest their garden, and to shop, plan, and prepare healthy meals on a budget with Healthy Acadia’s Food Programs team and Maine SNAP-Ed.
Safe Harbor opened in August 2020 as the first recovery residence in Downeast Maine to be certified by the Maine Association of Recovery Residences (MARR). The home operates as a non-clinical Level 2 program and supports multiple and diverse pathways to recovery, including medication-assisted treatment (MAT), but does not provide clinical treatment services.
Healthy Acadia is a 501(C)(3) community health organization building vibrant communities and making it easier for all people to lead healthy lives throughout Washington and Hancock counties. This year, Healthy Acadia invites you to join them in celebrating 20 years of empowering people and organizations to build healthy communities together. For more information about Healthy Acadia’s community health initiatives, visit healthyacadia.org.
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