When Mike was 13 years old he found himself experimenting with marijuana and alcohol with friends. Soon after he began taking pills and eventually harder drugs to deal with life. Mike got sober for the first time when I was 18. He left Philadelphia, his hometown, and travelled to Los Angeles and was taken under the wing of a staff member at the sober living where he lived. Mike says, “I’ll never forget what that person did for me and ever since I have set out to do the same for someone else who was as scared and hopeless as I was. I love recovery and if it weren’t for the staff of a few facilities I don’t think I could have learned how to be a person in recovery.” “Damn right I like the life I live, cause I went from negative to positive and it’s all good” -Notorious B.I.G.

Jackie Daniels is a person in long-term recovery, clinical social worker and recovery advocate. Jackie has worked since 2000 to prevent, treat, and provide support to individuals living in addiction recovery. Previous employers include Meadows Hospital, Centerstone, and in August, 2017, Jackie left Indiana University to join the Indiana Center for Recovery as the Executive Director. A clinical social worker since 2005, she also is adjunct faculty for the Indiana University School of Social Work, teaching courses on substance use and addictions practice. Jackie is a recovery advocate, providing the “Faces and Voices of Recovery” Recovery Messaging training to individuals wishing to challenge the stigma of addiction through the use of personal messaging. In 2012, Jackie’s story was featured on Lifetime’s Teen Trouble with Josh Shipp. In 2016, Jackie was responsible for bringing the overdose antidote, naloxone, to Indiana University, now available free and anonymously to IU students. Jackie works tirelessly to promote rights, compassion, and understanding for those in recovery from addiction. Most recently, Jackie was part of a cover story for Bloomington’s hometown magazine, Bloom Magazine called “Voices of Recovery.” “There is no person walking the face of the earth who demonstrates more courage, dignity, honesty, and integrity, than a person in recovery.”