MARQUETTE, MI-- Great Lakes Recovery Centers and the John Kivela Legacy Fund have joined forces to create a place in Marquette to help men recovering from substance abuse disorders.
It’s a project meant to honor the late state representative, who was on his own path of recovery from an addiction to alcohol.
Called the John Kivela House, it will be a safe space for up to six men who have been sober for at least 30 days. They’ll receive therapy, get a job and undergo intensive case management.
Amy Poirier is the GLRC Foundation Coordinator.
“We have a person who will be working there and help them with anything that they might need help with, just to make sure that, you know, they’re starting out this life on a positive foot.”
Poirier says the house will offer those in recovery a better chance of not using.
“Instead of them going right back to their homes, where they are going to be met with everything that they encountered before they started treatment, this gives them another option.”
John’s wife Sandy says she and her family completely support the idea, and that treatment and recovery were things John really believed in.
“We had many conversations when he was still alive about how important services for… we just didn’t have enough in our community, there weren’t enough places like this house. There just are not enough beds anywhere in the U.P.”
Sandy Kivela says people who are recovering from addictions often go through several relapses. She says unfortunately John didn’t make it through his last relapse, but she believes he would be proud of what’s been done to honor his memory.
“So I think he would just be so happy that this was a part of something that we were able to accomplish in his name.”
The John Kivela House is slated to open in the near future.
More information can be found at www.greatlakesrecovery.org.
