How Jeff Broke Free from Fentanyl with C-HRT Safe Haven

Substance use had surrounded Jeff his whole life, but he never imagined he would become addicted. However, when he began to experience excruciating pain in his hip, he fell into the clutches of fentanyl. Control over his life vanished; he lost his job and his apartment. He tried quitting, but it felt impossible without any support.

C-HRT gave Jeff the sanctuary he needed to commit to sobriety and take his life back into his own hands. February 2025.

Luckily, Jeff found ECS C-HRT Safe Haven. C-HRT gave him a safe place to sleep, food to eat, and a community that embraced him in his recovery journey. With the help of C-HRT, Jeff went completely substance free, found a job, got a hip replacement, and moved into his own housing. The program gave him the sanctuary he needed to take back his life and move forward. Watch Jeff’s video to hear him tell his story and visit ECS C-HRT Safe Haven to learn more.

UTSH Taps into Creativity

UTSH residents work on a various art projects. March 2025.

Residents at ECS Uptown Safe Haven (UTSH) tapped into their creativity during another art class, this time painting door signs. The art class projects vary — residents try their hands at everything from creating abstract watercolor pieces and still life drawings to decorating wood cutouts and ornaments. The classes begin with an education session on different art techniques such as mixing prime colors, studying light, and learning about still life.

Residents express their creativity by painting door signs. March 2025.

These classes would not be possible without the dedication of two volunteers: Paula McColl and Gerri Smith. Paula and Gerri are parishioners at St. James-by-the-Sea, and they are also both artists with experience in art instruction. The women plan the projects for each month’s class and provide all of the supplies.

Art classes provide a relaxing positive enrichment activity for residents and allows them to express themselves through a creative outlet.

Residents will have the chance to showcase their finished products at the Art Speaks art show on October 24 at St. James-by-the-Sea. 100% of the proceeds from the sales of each piece at the exhibit go directly to the resident who created the piece.

To learn more about the work UTSH does, visit Uptown Safe Haven — Episcopal Community Services.

Art classes allow residents to learn more about art and relax as they craft. March 2025.

Volunteers from St. James-by-the-Sea give their time and talent to UTSH art classes. March 2025.

Open House at New CERRC Facility

CERRC staff, donors, and clients celebrate the new facility. January 2025.

SAN DIEGO — Since 2017, ECS Central East Regional Recovery Center (CERRC) has been offering substance use recovery services to the community, ensuring clients are met with the utmost respect, compassion, and support. In August, CERRC found a new home to continue offering these services. The ECS community came together on Thursday to celebrate the new facility and the expansion of the program.

(From left to right) CEO Elizabeth Fitzsimons, Supervisor Monica Montgomery Steppe, and CERRC Case Manager Stephanie Duffy pose for a photo. January 2025.

Guests were given tours of the new facility by staff and learned about the services offered at CERRC. ECS CEO Elizabeth Fitzsimons, San Diego County District Four Supervisor Monica Montgomery Steppe, and CERRC Case Manager and former client Stephanie Duffy all spoke, sharing their gratification for the new facility and the continuance of CERRC’s work.

CERRC staff give guests a tour of the new building. January 2025.

Duffy, a current Case Manager at CERRC, was deeply impacted by the program as a former client. She shared that she had no family in California, so when she came to CERRC she told her counselor, “You’re my support.” They came through, guiding Stephie along each step of her recovery journey. “I’m really grateful because I know that this place, this building is going to change a lot of people’s lives,” Duffy said.

San Diego County was among the guests at the open house. January 2025.

The open house proved a valuable time for community members to engage with ECS and CERRC. ECS Board Member La Monica Everett-Haynes reflected on this and stated, “Having events and activities like this, it’s all about community building and helping us relate to one another which is the foundation of our work.”

CERRC is also preparing to expand its services through the addition of ambulatory withdrawal management and medication-assisted treatment (MAT). “Our vision is to make CERRC a cornerstone of community support, offering an innovative and comprehensive program that truly makes a difference,” said Embrie Tapia, Director of Behavioral Health Services at ECS.

The ECS Central East Regional Recovery Center (CERRC), funded by San Diego County Behavioral Health Services, provides outpatient treatment services to adults with substance use disorders. To learn more about the work of ECS CERRC visit ecscalifornia.org/central-east-regional-recovery-center.

When Compassion Becomes the Foundation

ECS is committed to supporting our neighbors in need so we can excel together. Photo Courtesy of Zac Durante/Unsplash.

Episcopal Community Services (ECS) has been uplifting San Diegans for nearly a century. Although its services have changed and some programs have come and gone, its mission to break barriers and transform communities has remained steadfast. 

John has witnessed the lasting heartbeat of ECS firsthand. A client of ECS in the 90s and a supportive volunteer through the years after, John has not only felt the impact of ECS but has lent a hand to carrying the intention of compassionate service forward.  

When John moved from New Orleans to San Diego to join the Navy, he didn’t know that he was already developing a substance use disorder (SUD). When he overheard a few of his new acquaintances talking about getting drugs downtown, he became interested, so he ventured downtown, made a purchase, and was arrested the very same day. When his urinalysis came back positive for drugs, the Navy no longer wanted to retain him. They gave him the option to go to rehab or back home to New Orleans. “I knew that if I went back home, I was going to be dead,” John said. So, he accepted the help and went to rehab. However, challenges awaited him when he finished the program. “I found out that once I got back to San Diego that I was going to be kicked out [of the Navy] and once I was kicked out, I was going to be homeless,” he explained. 

With only his seabag full of clothes and his final paycheck from the Navy, John was left on his own. He saw a glimmer of hope when he was hired at a new job, but he had no place to go. Then he heard about ECS’ transitional housing program. “God was working in my life,” John said. After a period of waiting, a spot finally opened at the program. John recalled going to the program to interview for the spot and meeting the program manager Linda Thomas, who John described as a “beautiful soul.”  

One of the requirements for the program was a paystub to prove employment. John’s new job did not start until the following week, so he had nothing to show Linda. But he shared his story with her and “she saw the desperation in my eyes and saw that I wasn't running a story on her... so she made an exception,” and John moved in that night.  

“I showed up there at 21 years old with literally no living skills, no responsibilities, other than knowing I needed to survive. I needed to stay clean and sober,” John said. The staff — including Linda and two other staff members, Loren and Cynthia — quickly took him under their wings, checking in on him and supporting him the whole way. “I learned a lot of things. I learned how to be responsible; they gave me the chance to go to school and work and save money.” Cynthia even baked him a cake to celebrate his first year of sobriety.  

The program also led John to his best friend who encouraged him to pursue his goals, such as becoming a registered nurse (RN). “About nine months in, I met my best friend, we became roommates. He’s still my best friend, he’s still sober 34 years,” he said.  

John graduated from the program, maintained sobriety, attended and graduated from college, became an RN, got married, and had two children. “My life has progressively gotten better as a result of all those things I learned at ECS,” he said. 

The services John received at ECS allowed him to grow, build a foundation, and give back. Photo Courtesy of Lina Trochez/Unsplash.

After that transitional housing location closed, John lost contact with the staff members, but he wanted to share his successes with Linda. He wrote letters to four different “Linda Thomases.” “Two of the people wrote back and said, ‘I’m not the Linda Thomas you’re looking for, but you’ve inspired me’... it was a cool side effect of an accident,” he said. Luckily, one of the letters found the right Linda Thomas. He was able to introduce her to his children and “thank her in person for giving me a chance... for seeing something in me that I didn’t see in myself at the time,” John said. 

John was also able to ask Linda how he could continue his journey with ECS. “I always wanted to be kind to people and be helpful, and — especially with ECS — give back,” he said. One day, after speaking with her on the phone about volunteer opportunities, a van pulled up next to John that caught his attention. “It was an ECS vehicle,” he said. “I wrote the phone number down, made the calls, got plugged in, and started to volunteer.” From handyman tasks to cooking Thanksgiving dinner to sponsoring a family through Family-to-Family for the Holidays, John has extended his services to ECS. “I owe my life to the program. It gave me the foundation I needed,” he said.   

ECS staff, volunteers, donors, and board members are dedicated to creating an abundant and equitable society where all have unlimited potential and will continue to work towards these ideals for years to come. To learn more about volunteer opportunities with ECS, visit ecscalifornia.org/volunteer.