Starting the Conversation Early. Youth Recovery Coaches Connect with DETLC Campers
This post is adapted from article contributed by Leo Van Ummersen, Maine Recovery Core Youth Recovery Coach Intern
This July, Healthy Acadia’s youth peer recovery coaches—Isaac Collins, Jr., Christian Fowler, and Leo Van Ummersen—spent time with two energetic youth groups at the Down East Teen Leadership Camp (DETLC), sharing stories, building connections, and inspiring conversations about making positive choices.
Down East Teen Leadership Camp (DETLC), now in its 25th year, offers middle school students entering grades 7 through 9 from across Maine’s Washington and Hancock counties the opportunity to build confidence, enhance decision-making skills, and connect with peers in a safe, supportive, and engaging environment. DETLC features a full schedule of hands-on workshops, motivational speakers, and team-building activities designed to promote healthy choices, emotional resilience, and substance use prevention. Daily workshops explore social issues that matter most to teens, including navigating peer pressure, embracing diversity, and fostering inclusive communities.
The youth recovery coaching team was excited to build rapport with middle school students and rising freshmen, and teen counselors who had been campers in previous years. Although the Youth Recovery Coaching program serves 14 to 21-year-olds, building relationships with young people early is integral to supporting recovery communities for teens. Starting conversations early about recovery, self-care, making healthy choices, risky behavior, and building personal awareness helps teens understand the options available and the resources they can lean on, whether as leaders who may be struggling or as leaders who can identify when friends and peers may need additional support.
The coaches engaged students in conversations about what recovery means, the role of a recovery coach, and youth leadership strategies when approaching substance use. As a coach, it was exciting to see teens actively engaged in activities about healthy choices and identifying the impact of trauma and substance use on personal growth and development.
It's hard to find anyone in Maine who hasn’t been impacted by substance use, and that isn’t an exception for teens. The Youth Recovery Coaching Program, a pilot project of Healthy Acadia’s Maine Alliance for Recovery Coaching (Maine ARC), offers critical support to individuals aged 14 to 21 in Washington and Hancock counties who are impacted by substance use.
Youth Recovery Coaches are trained near-peers with lived experience. They provide one-on-one support and lead outreach efforts to connect with young people in their communities who have been impacted by substance use. The program also engages volunteer and paid interns through Healthy Acadia’s Maine Recovery Core Program, creating meaningful pathways for those interested in entering the behavioral health field.
Our Youth Recovery coaching team is available in Washington and Hancock counties to support young people impacted by substance use. Teens and young adults ages 14-21 can utilize the peer support of recovery coaches to make more informed choices around their relationship with drugs and alcohol or get support when substance use has impacted their family or personal relationships.
Youth Recovery Coaching Summer Drop-Ins
This summer, youth ages 14–21 impacted by substance use are invited to a welcoming space for support, creativity, connection, and community. Hosted by our Youth Recovery Coach team, the Youth Recovery Coaching Summer Drop-In in Ellsworth is a free, weekly event designed to help young people connect, express themselves, and explore recovery goals in a judgment-free setting.
Activities include printmaking, DIY patches, collages, games, and more. Materials are provided—or bring your own project!
Drop-in hours at 24 Church Street, Ellsworth:
Ages 18–21: Mondays, 12–1:30 p.m.
Ages 14–17: Tuesdays, 12–1:30 p.m.
You don’t need to be working with a coach to attend—everyone is welcome! It’s a safe space to talk about recovery, goal-setting, and what matters most to you.
Learn more by contacting Steven Tilney at steven.tilney@healthyacadia.org or 207-610-3894.