Meagan, tell us a little bit about you and how you got connected to prevention work. Growing up in Green Bay, my father was very involved in ministry, in fact he started a homeless shelter. My priority as a young person was to take the guest’s minds off of their day. That human to human connection had a huge impact on me. Learning their stories and hearing those repeated, underlying connections they had to substance use stuck with me. I went on to school knowing that I wanted to help people address those connections. Prevention made the most sense. Although I had friends and knew people that went into nursing, social work, and many other helping professions, to me it just felt right to work further upstream to support people. I wanted to work smarter, not harder to help people find find their voice. Now I get to work across a continuum of care and we’re all working together to make changes.

 Briefly tell us about your organization and your community. What is the mission of your work? Whether I’m working in my role as a prevention specialist or with the Northwoods Coalition, there really seems to be a connection to “strong coalitions, healthy communities.” Within prevention we are always helping people move towards the recovery trajectory, it just depends where in my different roles I am approaching it. Moving at the community level, I am one to one, hearing individual needs. Within broader systems work, we are looking at systems level and trying to make the environments work better around and for people.

What inspires you to help others in the community? The guests that I met at the homeless shelter when I was younger gave me that human connection that was rewarding and enriching and helped me connect to my purpose early on. The role my family played that inspired me to do this work; being present for others in service was just part of my family life growing up. I also think consistently about one of the first recovery coaches I trained; her personal life story sits deeply with me and grounds me in this work. Being present with this recovery coach and seeing all she has achieved, watching her grow to be her best self, helps remind me how important and valuable it is to give voice to others is – the immense internal reward it is to do this work. To see others succeed is deeply rewarding. 

What is a mental health or substance use resource you find to be helpful as a professional working in this field? Ahhh, what a hard question! There are many great resources out there. CADCA is the biggest resource that I lean on the hardest. It has a lot of materials, connections, and links; it’s my go to. I loves how they advocate for prevention coalitions. Now is a time to give them additional support for all they do to support coalition work.

What is a resource you recommend to a community member who may want information about mental health or substance use? The Prevention Technology Transfer Center PTTC for our regional area, Great Lakes ROTA-RC as a regional hub and connector, and Alliance for WI Youth as state wide coalition. Each has their place in the work and each offers for something different. For anyone struggling – 211 definitely has it figured out!

What tips (2 – 3) can you share about building mental health and substance use resources for the unique needs of rural communities?

1. “Nothing for us without us” – Making sure you have people with lived experience at the table. Make sure they are in the process from the beginning.
2. Do an environmental scan of your community. So often we are duplicating efforts. We have to work smarter, not harder. 
3. Don’t overlook 100 cups of coffee. Its important to get to know people. Its what will make your coalition, your community stronger. Its what determines buy in to where you want to go in your efforts.