65 Years of Triumph

One of our two founding agencies, Alcoholism Services of Cleveland, opened its doors in 1955. This would not have been possible without Martha "Marty" Baker, who was helped into recovery by Alcoholics Anonymous. Wife of a prominent Cleveland businessman, Mrs. Baker saw that many others needed help, so when the National Council on Alcoholism tried to start a treatment agency in Cleveland, she worked tirelessly, raising $90,000 from her husband’s business associates. It was enough to open a small storefront on Huron Road. The center grew, and in recognition of the need to address all addictions, changed its name, becoming Recovery Resources.

Our second founding agency also has roots in the late 1970s. It began when Mel Edmonds, a steel worker, found himself disabled and out of work. He tried to get help, but found the existing community programs inadequate. Determined to change this, he rented a small storefront on Fulton Road in Ohio City, set up a kitchen table and started providing counseling to anyone who dropped in. Gradually, with help from others, he was able to secure grant money to expand, and Neighborhood Counseling Services began its journey to becoming a premier provider of mental health services in the community.  

In 2008, Recovery Resources formed a strategic partnership with Community Challenge, a group working to prevent the abuse of alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs in Cleveland’s West Shore communities. Community Challenge was founded 23 years earlier by concerned parents and citizens of Rocky River to help reduce substance use and abuse by young people in its community. Community Challenge set its sights on broadening its reach throughout the West Shore communities, and since joining forces with RR has now provided prevention services in nearly all of the West Shore communities.

Spectrum of Supportive Services, which joined the Recovery Resources family in 2011, focused on the provision of consumer-operated services and self-help/peer support services for Cuyahoga County adults with mental illness and/or substance abuse disorders. Operating six houses, condominiums or apartment clusters, these supported housing sites focus on providing as much autonomy as possible to those we serve. Spectrum is also home to the Employment Alliance, a supported employment program that assists with employment preparation, job coaching and on-the-job advocacy; the Warm Line, a peer-support staffed telephone line that provides a listening ear and transfers calls to Mobile Crisis when necessary; and six core Social Enterprises - businesses that employ clients living with mental health and substance abuse diagnoses to help them gain skills they want for competitive employment. These businesses include Custom Framing, Onsite Café Management, Bed Bug Eradication (using a safe, effective chemical-free, and cost-effective heat treatment process), Carpet & Upholstery Cleaning, Lawn & Landscape Care and Janitorial Service.