With a focus on reducing the stigma of substance abuse, both by helping companies hire recovering employees and helping recovering individuals find successful employment, the Hyer Calling Foundation offers free of charge personalized programs that include professional orientation, placement assistance, career support during the first year of employment, grants to acquire continuing education and certain legal services carried out by external lawyers at the expense of the Foundation that make it easier for clients to reset in their professional lives.
Volunteer coaches come from across the United States and include: Dr. Alison McBride (Wake Forest, North Carolina) Lisa Rodriguez (New York, NY), Erika room (St. Louis, Missouri), Dana Morgan (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania), and Cathy Armstrong (Cornelius, North Carolina). Biographies of the volunteer coaches are below.
Established in philadelphia cream by labor and employment lawyer Kevin Hyer and family in an effort to reduce and ultimately eradicate the stigma of substance use disorders in the workplace, the Foundation raises funds to provide the benchmark for free career counseling and related services that the insurance does not provide so that people in recovery can get back on their feet professionally as quickly as possible, while encouraging companies to hire employees in recovery.
Hyer, himself in recovery, is passionate about the need to give back, the importance of addressing workplace stigma related to addiction and recovery, and the fact that everyone deserves a second chance.
“The truth is, especially now as we emerge from the pandemic and continue to face the Great Resignation, the recovery community offers the American business community a huge untapped resource,” Hyer said. “Employees in recovery are extremely grateful to have a second chance at life and, therefore, are loyal, hardworking and dedicated employees. And the Foundation gives them the tools they need to get back to work and lead productive and meaningful lives.
In addition to offering personalized coaching and support to individuals and companies, the Foundation is able to help with placement assistance through its network of employers, so that they are able to make a tangible difference on all sides.
ADD/1 Hyer Calling Foundation adds volunteer coaches to services offered
“Out of treatment,” Hyer said, “there is very little support to help people in recovery deal with the stigma associated with addiction or recovery. How do they re-enter the workforce? thing had to change.
“There’s no question that some employers are hesitant to hire a recovering drug addict,” Hyer adds. According to Better Addiction Care, relapse statistics are just a reminder of how fragile the recovery process is.
- 90% of heroin users relapse.
- 90% of people with an alcohol addiction relapse.
- 88% of methamphetamine users relapse.
- 71% of marijuana users relapse.
Yet, while Hyer knows full well that the statistics are daunting, “That’s what drives our mission and the importance of what we do. We address these issues head-on, offer assistance, solutions, a fresh start and hope.”
The average cost to help an individual ranges from $5,000 at $23,000. To make a donation go to https://donate.thehyercallingfoundation.org/ or call 757-773-4588. The Hyer Calling Foundation, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.
For more information, please visit www.thehyercallingfoundation.org. For media or interview requests, please contact Nina Zucker Associates at 610.457.4387 or [email protected].
VOLUNTEER COACHES OF THE HYER CALLING FOUNDATION
Liza RODRIGUEZ grew up in Brooklyn, New York Bedford–Stuyvesant section, grandson of agricultural workers from Porto Rico who immigrated there to start a family. The multicultural community has helped her recognize and value different perspectives, as has witnessing the negative impact that poverty, poorly funded education, and substance abuse have on a community. With the support of an East Harlem nonprofit, Liza secured scholarships, earned a bachelor’s degree from Amherst College and graduated with honors in Latin American Studies and Economics.
From work in financial data management on Wall Street to nonprofit educational programs, Liza has developed her career in human resources management with several Fortune 500 companies, continuing her studies with a scholarship from Dow Chemical Industries culminating in a Masters in Organizational Development and Design. from the University of Villanova. Liza has 20 years of professional experience advising and coaching others from all walks of life, and is currently a Regional Human Resources Professional for a leading foodservice company. His HR experience in consumer goods, retail, manufacturing and non-profit organizations has allowed him to coach and advise executives as well as frontline employees. Currently completing an International Coaching Certification (ICF) as an ICF Fellow, Liza is committed to lending her talents to those seeking to enhance their ability to meet personal and professional challenges, providing guidance professionals in CV development, networking and managing job interviews.
ERIKA ROOM, civil servant for 12 years and external coach for the Defense Information Systems Agency. She is a Program Manager in the International Solutions Office of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, where she also coaches other NGA colleagues. She finished her Coach
ADD/2 Hyer Calling Foundation adds volunteer coaches to services offered
training program with Group Works in 2021, and is dedicated to helping people grow as human beings, achieve their goals, and find joy in their lives through coaching.
She holds a BA in Interdisciplinary Studies with a major in Religious Studies and Psychology from Virginia Polytechnic University, an MA in Human Services: Family Counseling, and a Graduate Certificate in Leadership. and management of Liberty University.
Erika trained and served as an Air Force Mediator in European Combatant Command (EUCOM) during her years serving in the UK, as Technical Lead of the NGA Support Team at the Joint Analytical Center for EUCOM. She also worked as a program manager at NGA College developing curriculum and mentoring facilitators. During her years as a federal contractor, she worked at the director of the National Intelligence-Open Source Center.
From the north VirginiaErika is a resident of Saint Louis region where she runs a busy household with a husband, three children, two dogs, a cat, six chickens and a handful of beehives. Erika is no stranger to the realities of addiction as her brother-in-law runs a rehab facility.
DANA MORGANMBA, SHRM-SCP has worked in the field of human resources, people and culture for more than 20 years, in both the public and private sectors. Dana, based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, has served in criminal justice, healthcare and technology during his career and has had the pleasure of working locally and globally on 6 continents. She has been an executive and career coach for the past 5 years and is currently pursuing her ICF PCC degree. Making an impact in people’s lives is her passion and Dana is a dedicated volunteer for various charities to give back.
ALLISON MC BRIDE was born and raised in the mountains of North Carolina. Passionate about education and children, she works as a pediatrician at Wake Forest School of Medicine. In this role, she found great joy in helping others succeed and recently completed leadership coaching training. Married with two teenage sons, Allison has experienced alcohol addiction with family members and substance abuse disorders with pediatric patients.
CATHY ARMSTRONG is currently Assistant Vice President, Senior HR Strategic Partner at Atrium Health, where she partners with leaders and the business to connect HR strategies to operations, helps shape leadership team culture, leads transformation consulting missions, provides informal coaching through influence and helps the leader to develop his capacity for change and his leadership effectiveness.
She joined Atrium (the largest employer in Charlotte, North Carolinaand one of the nation’s largest public nonprofit health care organizations with 70,000 teammates, 900 care locations, and more than 10 million patient encounters annually) in November 2012 as Assistant Vice President of Workforce Relations at Human Resources, providing strategic and tactical HR leadership to over 16,000 teammates. Prior to joining Atrium Health, Cathy was Senior Director of Human Resources at Amazon.com, Inc., in Lexington, Kentuckywhere she partnered with the leadership team and operations to support growth, productivity and people strategies.
Cathy started her human resources career in the manufacturing and operations industry. She has held various management positions with increasing responsibilities at Ingersoll Rand Company in Davidson, North Carolina; Molson Coors Brewery in Elkton, Virginia and graphic packaging
ADD/3 Hyer Calling Foundation adds volunteer coaches to services offered
international in Charlotte, North Carolina and Malvern, Pennsylvania.
A native of Chester, PennsylvaniaCathy received her Masters in Organizational Development and Leadership from Saint Joseph University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and his bachelor’s degree in political science from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University in Greensboro, North Carolina. Cathy is currently participating in the Coaching Leader program, through Groupworks, to obtain her coaching certification. Additionally, Cathy completed the University of Michigan Human Resources Program Executive and is a Certified Facilitator for PDI 360 Assessments. She currently sits on three boards – The Charlotte Building Initiative (CBI), Child Care Resources, Inc. and Braveworks.
Believing in giving back to her community, Cathy is engaged in several internal and external mentoring relationships with key talent at Atrium Health, in partnership with the Women’s Executive Leadership Group. Mom of two teenagers, Cathy and her family reside in Cornelius, North Carolina.
SOURCE Hyer Calling Foundation, Inc.
