Jody Perry, executive director of the university’s technology services, said students and staff in the College of Health Professions will play a vital role in these endeavors.
“Soul Searching for Recovery founder Joyce Berry was released from Lakin Correctional Center recently,” Perry said. “Ms. Berry founded Soul Searching for Recovery while incarcerated. A recovering addict herself, Berry wanted to use her time in the correctional center productively and has founded an organization to help others that find themselves spiraling into addiction. We wanted to get involved and with our students’ help, we really think we can make a difference with the addiction problem in the state.”
According to its mission, Soul Searching for Recovery is an organization that helps addicts focus on their family, friends and counseling.
“They help the families of addicts learn how to work with them to better support proper education, rehabilitation and eventually incorporation back into the family,” Perry said. “With an emphasis on music and music therapy, they hope to return addicts and their loved ones to some form of a productive and happy life as their primary goal.”
Soul Searching is a grass roots organization made up of a core group of volunteers and anonymous supporters with backgrounds in addiction, counseling, the legal system, administration, higher education, music, music therapy and health care. Their philosophy is “where there is help, there is hope and we’re here to provide help and support to anyone affected by addiction.”
Students and staff will begin working on this project in the spring semester. For more information or to schedule Berry to speak with your organization, please contact Perry by phone at 304-612-0303 or by e-mail at jody.perry@icloud.com.
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Photo: Joyce Berry, founder of Soul Searching for Recovery and recovering addict herself, wanted to use her time in the correctional center productively and has founded an organization to help others that find themselves spiraling into addiction.