Individuals discuss their journey to recovery and them willing to speak on it publicly.
Panelists: Jimmy Christmas, Jan Brown, Honesty Liller, Valley Haggard
Jimmy Christmas:
Jimmy Christmas has been a professional Social Worker, since 1994, a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) since 2002 and currently holds the following professional designations: Certified Substance Abuse Counselor (CSAC), Certified Clinical Trauma Professional (CCTP), Certified Clinical Supervisor, Certified ASAM Assessor, and Mindful Yoga Therapist (MYT). Jimmy’s current public service commitments include the Virginia Association of Recovery Residences (VARR), Virginia Cannabis Public Health Advisory Council, DBHDS/DMAS “Redesign” Initiative, VCU Rams In Recovery, Virginia Association of Community-Based Providers, and the Ujima Legacy Fund.
Jan Brown:
The Rev. Jan M. Brown is the Founding/Executive Director of SpiritWorks Foundation Center for the Soul. Jan is a person in long term recovery from addiction meaning she has not used drugs or alcohol or drugs since January 1, 1987. She is an ordained Deacon in the Episcopal Church, presently serving at Bruton Parish Church in Williamsburg, VA. She graduated from the College of William and Mary with a BA in Psychology and is certified as a Peer Recovery Support Specialist. In 2018 Jan received her Master of Addiction Science Degree from the International Programme on Addiction Studies through a specialized program with King’s College in London, the University of Adelaide and Virginia Commonwealth University. Jan is also an Addictions Educator and sought after speaker on topics of recovery-oriented systems of care, recovery support services and recovery management. Jan serves as the Chairperson of the Board of Directors of Faces and Voices of Recovery, Recovery Consultant on SAMHSA States Targeted Response (STR) Technical Assistance Center Team, Consensus Panel member for the SAMHSA TIP - Peer Recovery Support Specialists and co-chair of the Addictions and Recovery Commission for the Diocese of Southern Virginia. In 2014 she was appointed by the Governor of Virginia to serve on the Governor’s Task Force on Prescription Drug and Heroin Abuse.
Honesty Liller:
Honesty Liller is a woman in recovery from a substance use disorder since May 27, 2007 and a Certified Peer Recovery Specialist in VA. Honesty is the best-selling author of “Scattered Pink”and is the Chief Executive Officer of The McShin Foundation, a non-profit authentic peer-to-peer Recovery Community Organization (RCO), that serves individuals and families with substance use disorders. She is the recipient of the Vernon Johnson Award given by Faces and Voices of Recovery in 2015. Honesty was also featured on “Face The Nation”, FOX News, CNN, and PBS discussing addiction & recovery in America. In addition, she completed Stanford University’s Executive Program for Nonprofit Leaders. In 2019 she was honored with the Jean C. Harris Community Service Board Award from Hanover County. WRIC - Channel 8 News did a feature about Honesty for the “Richmond’s Remarkable Women” special in 2020. She has been a field reviewer for SAMHSA, Faces & Voices of Recovery, and CAPRSS. As a female entrepreneur she co-founded CARE Talks, LLC. She is a board member of LAPPA and Hanover CARES. Honesty is able to be a voice for those with addiction and their families through countless news articles, magazine stories, and TV interviews. To spend time with her husband, two children, and her two dogs is a gift that keeps giving!
Valley Haggard:
Valley Haggard is a writer, teacher, and energy worker gratefully recovering from multiple addictions through 12-step recovery. She was a Waffle House waitress, a dude ranch cabin girl, a cruise ship stewardess, a preschool teacher, and a book reviewer before writing and teaching creative nonfiction full-time. She holds a BA in Creative Writing from Sarah Lawrence College and is the recipient of a Richmond Magazine 2014 Theresa Pollak Prize, a 2015 Style Weekly Women in the Arts Award, and the winner of the 2018 James River Writers’ Emyl Jenkins award. Valley is the founder of the writing community Life in 10 Minutes, and the author of The Halfway House for Writers, Surrender Your Weapons: Writing to Heal, and her memoir, There’s No Accounting for the Strangeness of Things. She lives in Richmond, Virginia with her husband, son, and small zoo. Visit her at online at valleyhaggard.com.
10 июл 2023
