PRO-A

04/17/2026

Nominations Are Now Open for PRO-A's 9th Annual Leadership Event on Thursday, November 12, 2026, at the Country Club of Harrisburg.

Do you know a Champion of Service?

There are two Champion of Service awards chosen each year, one to an Institution/Organization and a second to an individual who has impacted our community working as a peer recovery support.
Awards are in recognition of exceptional service, each provided by the individual or organization in connecting individuals and/or their families with treatment and recovery resources for Drug & Alcohol Service System engagement.

Who Can Be Nominated?
Any Institution/Organization and individual that provide praiseworthy support to an individual or family member in need of treatment and recovery.

For more information on how to Nominate an Institution/Organization or Individual Champion, go to: https://pro-a.org/champion-of-service-award-nominations-2026/ and complete the Award Nomination form and click submit. Or email Nikki at Nikki.w@pro-a.org

04/16/2026

Sober for Several Years, Things Are Great and Then Relapsing - Now we know how common this is, why, and strategies to prevent relapse. Psychology Today

Relapse rarely occurs suddenly. Instead, it tends to develop gradually through the accumulation of multiple warning signs across different areas of life. Because there are no biological relapse biomarkers, clinicians must rely on structured recovery checkup monitoring "warning sign" questions. The researchers found that biological symptoms significantly affecting abstinence in relapsers were chronic pain and engaging in recreational drug use. Early biological relapse risk warning signs also include problems with sleep, changes in energy, appetite, weight gain or loss.

The new study also found that psychological and social changes were stronger predictors of relapse than biological markers. Depression or anxiety were common preceding factors, as were greater levels of impulsivity, and lower life satisfaction. Social aspects increasing relapse risks were loneliness, isolation, more time spent around alcohol, and changes in work or housing.

Sometimes recovered alcoholics relapse back to drinking after years. What happened? Now we know.

04/15/2026

Statewide Recovery House Scholarships available in 2026 through The Bridge Foundation

Our Bridge to Recovery Housing Scholarships will be available statewide in all Pennsylvania counties starting on January 2, 2026 to individuals with financial need transitioning to Pennsylvania licensed recovery housing. Funding will be
available to all individuals transitioning to recovery housing from treatment (can be outpatient) or incarceration, for up to three (3) months. Please check our website for further information and the scholarship application. Pennsylvania licensed recovery houses will be required to register with us prior to receiving funds for the benefit of a resident, and a recovery house registration form will be on our website.

LINKS:
- Bridge to Recovery Housing Program Web Page - https://bridge-foundation.org/bridge-to-recovery-housing-scholarships-and-referrals/
- Application for Bridge to Recovery Housing Scholarship - https://bridge-foundation.org/the-bridge-solution/grants-for-recovery/scholarship-application/
- Recovery Residence Registration & Agreement - https://bridge-foundation.org/bridgetorecoveryhousing/recovery-residence-registration/

The Bridge Foundation wishes everyone a peaceful and healthy New Year, and they look forward to working with you to provide access to safe, supportive recovery housing and recovery support services in 2026.

The Bridge Foundation - Newtown Square, PA 19073 WWW.BRIDGE-FOUNDATION.ORG thebridgefound@gmail.com

The Bridge Foundation was establish to help and support individuals seeking (and currently in) recovery from addiction and other life challenges.

04/14/2026

Recovery Centered Research Requires Accepted Definitions of Recovery - An Interview with Justin Bell

I recently read the paper you coauthored with Dr John Kelly, Utility or futility? Toward an operational definition ofaddiction recovery. I appreciated how the paper suggests both community definitions of recovery and objective clinical definitions that can support measurement and define change. It is a good step forward. But it’s going to be an interesting road ahead because the relationship between “addiction”, “recovery”, and biological approaches to understanding these terms is really, well, weird. According to a recent study, many people in addiction treatment find genetic frameworks of addiction to be unhelpful for their recovery, even if they believe them. This isn’t exactly what we find in say, schizophrenia, where people report feeling empowered by genetic causal explanations.

There’s something happening here that feels like a paradox – and a paradox probably requires a hybrid approach. Neither this nor that, but this and that. Recovery is neither entirely biological nor entirely spiritual/subjective/non-
biological. Sure, we can separate these definitions, but can we also combine them?

An Interview with Justin Bell, the Frontiers of Recovery Research Interview Series What is this series of interviews? In April of 2024, I had the distinct honor of being asked by author and thought…

04/14/2026

Help support our mission - Recovery in a High Potency World

We are hoping that you will consider supporting our 9th Annual Leadership event it is vital to our mission and our efforts to serve the statewide recovery community. For more information on Sponsorship opportunities click https://pro-a.org/sponsorship-opportunity/

The theme of this year’s dinner is Recovery in a High Potency World. As drugs have evolved, recovery processes coproduced with the recovery community must evolve even faster. In a high-potency drug environment, prevention, community education, and long-term recovery strategies must extend far beyond overdose reversal and acute medical care. We are navigating a fundamental shift in the addiction and recovery landscape. A shift defined by novel, high-potency substances and complex drug combinations. As pharmacological intensity increases, the recovery support structures that sustain long-term recovery become even more essential. In this rapidly changing environment, experiential knowledge and the ability to adapt interventions in real time are critical to help people into long term recovery.

We will have a half day training with approved NAADAC training credits, followed by a dinner with food, fellowship and awards for our state Champions of Service!

The PRO-A 9th Annual Leadership Event

When: Thursday, November 12, 2026
Where: The Country Club of Harrisburg –
401 Fishing Creek Valley Rd,
Harrisburg, PA 17112

Training and evening leadership events bring together the statewide recovery community and our allied groups.

For more information on Sponsorship opportunities click https://pro-a.org/sponsorship-opportunity/

To purchase tickets, click https://events.ticketleap.com/tickets/pennsylvania-recovery-organizations-alliance/9th-annual-leadership-event-recovery-in-a-high-potency-world

04/13/2026

Join us on The CALL on Tuesday, April 14th. PRO‑A’s Nikki Weir will be joined by Franca Dalibor from Geisinger Marworth to discuss April as Alcohol Awareness Month.

To Register for The CALL: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJwkc-yqpzkuE9zK4qvzHhf1N8EVXyZ_wGIs?fbclid=IwAR2wdT_5LAH5UqYn7RMwtXrZBCM5N54slnSl3UVCgAYN5w-Q7PYAbrdvCvs #/registration

What is it: PRO-A the statewide recovery community organization holds statewide weekly ZOOM call to support Recovery Community Organizations and members of the recovery community and strengthen recovery focused efforts across Pennsylvania.

All in PA are welcome to participate on THE CALL. Our Goals:

To understand what is happening to you, your organizations and your local community right now.

To support our fragile care recovery care system and support for our communities across Pennsylvania.

To help support each other and seek solutions for caring for ourselves and our community members as we strengthen recovery capital at the individual, family and community levels.

04/09/2026

God Wasn’t Done With Me

Speaking of recovery, my own is enhanced knowing that I’m not working in a place where nobody would be able to catch the signs of a relapse. If I’m doing something that I shouldn’t be doing, I’m still surrounded by people going through the same journey. The chances are very high someone would catch on, pull me aside, and make sure that I’m OK. Recovery never ends, and The Salvation Army’s support doesn’t either. Even as I work for Scranton, the Wilkes-Barre ARC is still my community. I’m secretary for the ARC alumni association. We feed the community and share about the work of The Salvation Army. When talking to others, I can still be that socially awkward kid from Fort Worth. Except when I’m telling the story of my journey: a child of Salvationist parents from Pennsylvania who ended up in Texas, then returned home carrying an addiction that turned into recovery when I realized I didn’t need just a program; I needed a place that felt like home.

Together, my wife and I are raising four beautiful children under age 6. Later this year I hope to celebrate 11 years of continued recovery. I managed to graduate with my bachelor’s degree with the highest GPA of the class, and I received several other awards when I walked across the stage. God has given me an amazing job opportunity, a beautiful family, and an undergraduate degree. He has surrounded me with people who truly care about me. I am looking forward to the journey God has set before me and hoping to impact as many people as possible along the way, just as others have done for me.

“The Salvation Army Adult Rehabilitation Center didn’t just give me my life back,” says Shawn Nenichka. “They taught me the right way to live it.” (Photo/Brooke Makena Photography)

04/07/2026

PA Senate Health & Human Services Committee held a public hearing on Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT) for opioid use disorder

The Pennsylvania Senate Health & Human Services Committee held a public hearing on Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT) for opioid use disorder on Tuesday, March 17, 2026, 11:00 AM. It included testimony from the Department of Drug & Alcohol Programs as well as subject matter experts on the role of prescribed narcotics in medication-assisted therapy for addiction management, Chairpersons: Senator Michele Brooks and Senator Art Haywood.

Testimony during the hearing highlighted concerns that current policies and funding gaps often create barriers to access for life-saving medications like buprenorphine and methadone. Some experts and lawmakers expressed apprehension about the long-term use of prescribed narcotics in recovery, advocating instead for an increased focus on non-addictive, long-acting alternatives. Additionally, providers emphasized that without a comprehensive approach that includes behavioral health support, medication alone may not be enough to prevent relapse or address the underlying causes of addiction.

04/06/2026

Join us on The CALL on Tuesday, April 7th. PRO-A will have Guest Breannah Allen from Malvern Health on the importance of addressing trauma in maintaining recovery.

To Register for The CALL: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJwkc-yqpzkuE9zK4qvzHhf1N8EVXyZ_wGIs?fbclid=IwAR2wdT_5LAH5UqYn7RMwtXrZBCM5N54slnSl3UVCgAYN5w-Q7PYAbrdvCvs #/registration

What is it: PRO-A the statewide recovery community organization holds statewide weekly ZOOM call to support Recovery Community Organizations and members of the recovery community and strengthen recovery focused efforts across Pennsylvania.

All in PA are welcome to participate on THE CALL. Our Goals:

To understand what is happening to you, your organizations and your local community right now.

To support our fragile care recovery care system and support for our communities across Pennsylvania.

To help support each other and seek solutions for caring for ourselves and our community members as we strengthen recovery capital at the individual, family and community levels.