Give People What They Need—and They Grow

by Mike Schut, Communications Manager Ask Vince Collins what he most likes about the Recovery Café model and he just might start reflecting on his background working with children. His college degree focused on preschool children. And he has worked in child welfare and with special-needs adoptions.  For children to do well, he says, you […]

Read the full post >>

Open Hearts, Saying Yes: The Founding of Recovery Café Longmont

by Mike Schut, Communications Manager Walking through the world with an open heart can be a dangerous practice. It just might be broken; it just might be stirred to respond.  And you can never predict what will nudge an already opened heart to crack open just a little wider. For Lawson Drinkard it was words […]

Read the full post >>

Experiencing His Humanity Again

by Elizabeth McMeekin, Director of Operations, Recovery Café DC [Editor’s note: the Recovery Café model is membership-based. Members are those most closely held community members in each of the 61 Cafés across the US and Canada. In the first quarter of 2023, 4,000 Members participated in programming at those Cafés. Quinntez’s story includes his participation […]

Read the full post >>

Chosen Families: Reflecting on Radical Love within the Queer Community

by Alex Welch, Emerging Member Manager If I were able, I would not choose most of my family.  I grew up in an emotionally abusive and neglectful household where I did not feel safe or loved in the way every child needs. Intergenerational trauma has spread emotional loneliness, substance use, and mental illness like wildfire […]

Read the full post >>

Gardening: Nurturing Multiple Pathways

by Michael Schut, Communications Manager Here at the Recovery Café Network we describe Recovery Cafés in a variety of ways: And we emphasize that our practices—like motivational enhancement and trauma-informed care—are evidence-based. And that’s important. Evidence-based practices have been rigorously tested, peer reviewed, often described and published in academic journals; they have been proven effective. […]

Read the full post >>

Approaching Addiction, Trauma, and Housing Insecurity, Spiritually

A reflection on the Recovery Café Network’s Guiding Principles by Aaron Guldenschuh-Gatten, Associate Executive Director of Recovery Café Lexington and Kate’s Place Recovery Café Lexington is a member of the Recovery Café Network. Our membership in this larger community of Cafés provides us with meaningful support and allows us to engage in our work through […]

Read the full post >>

From Dungeon to Beach Café—Creating Embracing and Healing Spaces

by Michael Schut, Communications Manager From the resort town of Daytona Beach, to big-city Seattle, to rural counties in Indiana and Washington, the attitudes are strikingly similar and familiar: the lives of those who come to Recovery Cafés don’t matter so much. And so the physical spaces—to the specifics of the carpet, the paint, the […]

Read the full post >>