The Empowerment Center is excited to extend the warmest of welcomes to our newest Board Member, Gabi Vascan! As Co-Founder of Pulse Business Consulting and a University of Nevada-Reno MBA graduate, Vascan looks forward to sharing her financial experience, as well as her expertise in guiding executive teams in strategy
At The Empowerment Center, our recovery approach is to look at the whole of every woman who walks through our doors and treat the root causes of her addiction. For many, their addictions stem from past traumas – making EMDR an especially helpful treatment tool! For the past year, Karen
When Betty Mathews lost her job during COVID, she turned to alcohol. She lost her housing too – and since her family didn’t want to take her in while she was drinking, found herself sleeping in her car with her two dogs. She showered and ate at the Hopes campus,
We’re thrilled to officially welcome Rikki Freedle as the new Property Manager at our Marvel Way sober living apartments! Along with this change, we’ve also switched to working with Eugene Burger Management Corporation, our new partner in running the day-to-day operations of our soon-to-be 88-unit apartment complex. As our Property
Having your own space and stability is a key step in recovery. Rennie Johnson, a Marvel Way resident, knows firsthand – and begins by telling us, “Getting a job and moving to Marvel Way catapulted me back into society as a regular functioning person.” A year ago, Rennie Johnson moved
We’re excited to announce the addition of a new member to the Empowerment Center Board of Directors: Cristyn Russo! Russo is Commissions Supervisor at TriNet, a cloud-based Human Resources solutions company, where her role is a hybrid of operations and accounting. She’s been a part of Northern Nevada’s philanthropic community
At The Empowerment Center and Marvel Way, we’re once again feeling like this year has absolutely been our biggest yet – for both sides of our organization! At The Empowerment Center, we’ve improved our 5-month women’s treatment program, finalized the design for our new 83-bed treatment facility, and chosen a
“Without Marvel Way, without having this beautiful place, I know I would be back on the streets or doing drugs again. And my kids need me. They need a level-headed mom who isn’t on drugs anymore.“ Nicole Hulihee has been sober for a year and lives in a 1-bedroom sober-living
The Empowerment Center is growing, and with these changes we’re excited to announce our organization’s new look, both on and offline! We’ve updated our website to better reflect who we are, the community we serve, and how we’re expanding our offerings. As we get ready to break ground on TEC2,
Growing up, Mariah Allbee knows she was a good kid. Born and raised in Reno, she did well in school and enjoyed camping and road trips with her family. She was the youngest of 3 siblings from her mom, and her dad’s only child. Mariah’s shift happened gradually. At 15,
At Marvel Way, we’re redefining what supportive housing should look like! Our apartment complex has always been a Nevada First – and since we opened our doors nearly two years ago, we’ve continued to expand our offerings. What makes our sober housing different? This summer, we grew our community while
“I always gave so much to everybody else while I was using that I didn’t leave any me left for me. Now I have those tools and boundaries I can set to where my me time is my time, and I don’t have to feel guilty about it.” Talking to
“I walk around downtown, and I’ll see the same people from seven years ago standing in what feels like the exact same spot they were in seven years ago. And they’re just paddling to stay above water. That could have easily been me.” While Christina Stone was once homeless, struggling
At The Empowerment Center, we provide wrap-around services for women struggling with addiction – including medical care! It’s one of our fastest growing sets of supportive programs, and one that makes our care model truly unique. Nearly all the women entering treatment at The Empowerment Center have co-occurring mental health
“Once my children became teenagers, independent, they didn’t need me as much. I started drinking one day and I didn’t stop. For about seven years straight, every day, all day.” Today, Misty Rodrigue is a House Manager at The Empowerment Center’s 5-month treatment program. She works the swing shift, her
At The Empowerment Center, we’re proud to include several University of Nevada, Reno (UNR) interns in the work we do. At both The Empowerment Center and Marvel Way, our interns support our clients and enhance our efforts by leading groups, improving communications around our programs, and sharing their specialized knowledge.
“I knew that I could hustle when I was doing bad. So why can’t I just flip it over into doing good? I just buckled down and went for it and put my head straight.” Beginning in her teens, Shannon was running the streets of Las Vegas. She continued for
Ashley Ward’s an Empowerment Center (TEC) graduate from 2016 – and has also been a Peer Support at TEC since 2019. She works with clients 1:1, guiding them through their addiction treatment. This can mean anything from walking them through the stages of their personal programs to helping with doctors’
“After I graduated the program, I worried I wasn’t going to be able to laugh and be who I was before. That I had lost me in all of this. And I get to see now that I’m absolutely still as bright and colorful and wild and crazy as I
Happy Mother’s Day, from The Empowerment Center! As a women-focused treatment center, The Empowerment Center is all about appreciating our current (and future) moms. For so many women, their recoveries and families are closely tied. Most moms choose to get treatment in part because of their children, when they see
Meet Our Program Director Steve Maxwell has been with The Empowerment Center since just about Day 1. New to Northern Nevada (and in recovery himself) he joined us as Housing Manager in 2009. He was here for the first walk-through of today’s Virginia Street treatment center, was a part of
When our clients enter treatment at The Empowerment Center, (TEC) most are out of work and many have complicated backgrounds of arrest and incarceration. Guiding them in finding work, overcoming barriers, and building careers is an important piece of what we do. During the first 30 days of TEC’s 5-month
Linda Buzick lives in a one-bedroom apartment at Marvel Way, her home since the supportive living complex opened its doors in fall 2023. She’s a leader in her home AA group, a weekly attendee of Marvel Way’s meetings, and an active member of the local recovery community. She finds strength
Did you know? About a third of Marvel Way’s residents are living alongside their furry friends. We’re home to 9 cats and 9 dogs – and expect these numbers to continue to climb. It’s just one of the many ways we stand out from the affordable housing and recovery pack.
At The Empowerment Center, we’re looking forward to our new headquarters and treatment center – TEC2. While we’ve loved our South Virginia home since 2005, as we’ve evolved from our roots as The Launching Pad halfway house to the addiction treatment center we are today we’ve come to need more
Have you met Yvette Myers? If you’re often out and about in Reno, you may have connected with our Director of Community Development. Yvette’s worked for The Empowerment Center for 2 years – and networking is a BIG part of what her world is about. She links our clients and
“After everything I’ve gone through, The Empowerment Center’s one of the best – actually – the best rehab program for women in Reno. If you stick through it, it really works,” declares Jasmin Malik. Jasmin graduated from The Empowerment Center’ 5-month treatment program on June 11, 2023. She’s also the
The Empowerment Center is proud to partner with the University of Nevada Reno (UNR) School of Social Work’s Field Education program. Since 2022, we’ve been working with interns pursuing both Masters and Bachelors degrees. Each student is given a list of local organizations to choose from and applies for positions
‘Tis the season to celebrate! We have so much to rejoice in as we close out 2023! This year was HUGE, for both The Empowerment Center and Marvel Way. We’ve been busy improving our programs, growing our resources, and setting the stage for bigger things to come. We’re excited about
In 2023, Roxanne DeCarlo celebrated her 9th year as Executive Director of The Empowerment Center! In her time with TEC, she’s led us through quite the journey – from our early years as a co-ed halfway house, to supporting women struggling with alcoholism and addiction, to expanding our services to
The Empowerment Center gives our warmest welcome to Sandy Gordon, our newest Board of Directors Member! Sandy moved to Nevada during high school and is a University of Nevada, Reno graduate. She currently works for Nevada State Development Corporation (NSDC), a nonprofit certified development company. Sandy is also a wedding
The Empowerment Center is proud to welcome Lee Hernandez to our Board of Directors! Lee Hernandez is CFO at Lumos & Associates, a multidisciplinary engineering firm providing structural, civil, geotechnical, surveys, and construction services in Nevada and California. He also founded Firmament Financial, a wealth management company that does investment
Heather Morton is studying welding at Truckee Meadows Community College (TMCC) while living at Marvel Way with her daughters, ages 2 and 4. Every morning, she drops them off at daycare on the way to her welding work and classes, which she looks forward to every day. In the evenings,
Sarah Verdugo was in treatment at The Empowerment Center in 2020. She currently lives in a 1-bedroom apartment at Marvel Way. She’s exploring going back to school, manages the Marvel Way community garden, and is enjoying getting to know her new sober community. Before Sarah’s recovery, she was in multiple
The Empowerment Center is a proud partner of the Washoe County Department of Alternative Sentencing’s STAR Program, which prioritizes Support, Treatment, Accountability, and Recovery for individuals with Opioid Use Disorder. This pilot program focuses on addressing the root causes of addiction, moving away from the traditional probation model. We spoke
Did you know? Sober living is most likely to be sustained in a safe, supportive, and clean environment. Our Marvel Way Apartments do just that! Last fall, Marvel Way (managed by The Empowerment Center) opened its doors as the first-of-its-kind in Nevada. We’re offering 42 affordable sober living apartments to
In supporting our residents at Marvel Way, Richard understands the importance of striking the right balance. After all, Marvel Way isn’t a treatment program – it’s a long-term apartment community with services available on site. At minimum, Richard is responsible for monthly drug testing and managing issues as they arise.
The Empowerment Center is dedicated to helping women who suffer from substance use disorders restore their dignity and quality of life. Since you’ve last heard from us, a lot has changed! We’ve been expanding client services, updating our programming, providing medication-assisted treatment onsite, and remodeling our rooms to better support
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