Harbor Peer and Wellness Center growing steadily

Thu, 03/14/2019 - 8:30am

The Harbor Peer and Wellness Center has slowly been coming along in its offerings to the wider peninsular community since opening in November. Program Coordinator Adam Sterrs said the focal Wellness Group which meets Tuesday evenings welcomes 15 to 20 people every meeting.

“We continue to see new faces on a weekly basis that just pop in to see what we're doing, to see what we're all about,” said Sterrs. “The word continues to spread, our name continues to spread … We were in that initial stage of 'What's going to happen?' Now, you're slowly seeing that start to develop, have its own legs and take off, really.”

The Peer Center has also been working closely on addiction outreach with LincolnHealth, Boothbay Harbor Police Chief Bob Hasch and Boothbay Region Community Resource Council's Holly Stover. An open line of communication with the community has been key to creating relationships with those who want to help and those who need help, said Sterrs.

“We all come together and we're working, striving for that same goal."

As a result, the Peer Center has added a new group. Crow Point Yoga has donated two free sessions of yoga.

“Partnering with Crow Point Yoga is also really big and we would like to continue to do that with other businesses in the community, to be able to partner up and share each other's services and work together,” said Sterrs.

Some groups will have activities those groups dictate, but some groups have already become staples to the Peer Center: Arts and Eats, Recovery Moms, and Recovery Resilience.

“Arts and Eats is kind of just having lunch and hanging out and talking. Recovery Moms is for mothers who are in recovery and they can kind of get together and work through things as a group. Recovery Resilience uses the Three Principles Group and is run by Patty Seybold and Shawn Doyen from the Community Center. It's something new to me and I'm learning more about that philosophy in terms of addiction and recovery.”

Sterrs said activities will likely come and go based on group interest, and the Peer Center will always have the Wellness Group and will likely develop new groups to stick around for a long time to come.

Said Sterrs, “I can't say enough about the community and support for this program and for what we're doing here. It really is about outreach and it's always about communication and education on this topic and we really need to continue to keep those lines of communication open. It's the only way we're going to understand addiction and how to cross those boundaries into a healthier state of mind and a better quality of living.”

Follow Harbor Peer and Wellness Center on Facebook to stay up-to-date on groups and events: https://www.facebook.com/Harbor-Peer-Wellness-Center-269713167031856/