Isolation leads to alienation. Fellowship in recovery heals.

As Betsy approached 50, her life fell apart. She had raised 5 children, then her husband suddenly died.  Alone and adrift, Betsy met new people.  They recognized her sadness and her pain.  They introduced her to crack.  Crack took Betsy down fast.  Before she even realized what had happened, she was alienated from her children, homeless and in trouble with the law. It was her sister who found ADA. She invited Betsy to try recovery in a new place with new people.  Several years later, I heard Betsy tell her story at a United Way event.  She marveled at the village that came together to help her rebuild her life.  Several United Way agencies offered her help at various points in her recovery:  ADA House, The Resource and Crisis Center of Galveston County, The Galveston County Food Bank, The Red Cross and The Family Service Center all played a part in returning Betsy to good health and self-sufficiency.  That day, when she told her story, she added Hospice Care Team to the list of helping agencies because in her recovery, Betsy provided a home for her terminally ill mother with the help of Hospice.