Recently, I joined city leaders and proud family members at the first graduation ceremony for eighteen participants in Baltimore's new Recovery Corps initiative. Part of the stepUP! Baltimore volunteer initiative, the Recovery Corps will train 100 former addicts to provide support to individuals in recovery and help them find stable work and housing opportunities. Volunteers in the Recovery Corps will help others in their journey to sustaining long-term recovery.

With Recovery Corps, Baltimore is changing the way we approach addiction. We will not allow our family members, friends, and neighbors who have substance abuse problems to be treated as civic liabilities, but rather as potential assets to this great city.

Volunteers will help people in recovery with physical and mental wellness, as well as provide assistance in finding housing, education, employment, and reliable transportation. Recovery Corps volunteers will be placed in treatment centers across Baltimore, including Gaudenzia, IBR REACH Mobile Health Services, Man Alive, Baltimore Community Resource Center, Harbel, and more centers to come.

The MD Alcohol and Drug Abuse Administration (MD-ADAA) estimates that approximately 60,000 Baltimoreans have substance abuse problems. Many of the adults who were admitted to State-funded treatment in 2010 lacked adequate access to healthcare, and had few job skills and insufficient education. With Recovery Corps, both the volunteers and recovering addicts will have the support they need to remain drug-free and build a stable life for themselves.

In August, the Mayor unveiled another part of the stepUP! Baltimore volunteer initiative: Power In Dirt. For more information about stepUP! Baltimore, Power In Dirt, or Recovery Corps, visit stepup.baltimorecity.gov. Individuals can view and download the full stepUP! Baltimore plan, learn more about its volunteer initiatives, and find additional volunteer opportunities around the city.