Friday, March 6, 2020 – ARCHway Institute held their 7th Annual Experience HOPE Gala in St. Louis, Missouri. This dinner and silent auction raised over $120,000 with over 300 guests in attendance. ARCHway was “blown away” by the success and by the people who showed their support for the work we are doing to educate and provide support to those with substance use and co-occurring mental health disorders.
The Event Showed ARCHway Growth Over the Last 7 Years
ARCHway was started in 2012 by John Stuckey, the founder and visionary. John, a person in long term recovery, used his personal experience to create a platform that works to eliminate barriers to recovery and to provide hope to individuals, families, and communities that recovery from the disease of addiction is possible.
With support, ARCHway is now operating in 7 states and has given over $250,000 in scholarships to individuals looking for a pathway to thriving in recovery. This growth has not been without its challenges, and it has taken endless work and dedication, but with support from the communities ARCHway is a part of, ARCHway is proud of the work it has accomplished.
This growth was clear on Friday night. Long time ARCHway board members, staff, and volunteers were in awe of the number in attendance and the number of donations and sponsors. It not only demonstrates the growth of the organization; it also truly showcases the need for the work ARCHway is doing.
Individuals and families facing substance use disorders often feel alone and at a loss for what to do or where to go. ARCHway strives to bring people, organizations, and communities together to support those with this disease.
This was very much demonstrated at Friday night’s event. There were representatives from a variety of organizations.
In attendance were individuals associated with Assisted Recovery Centers of America, Chestnut Health Systems, Ozark Healthcare, Alkermes, LIV Sober Living, MoNetwork, United Healthcare, and SSM Depaul Healthcare.
Our numerous sponsors not only included these providers and healthcare facilities but also Labor Unions, lawyers, financial assistance programs, and more.
ARCHway’s Hope Fund sponsors were present as well. Representatives from the Marci Smith, Jordan Hampton, Colton Baker, Brian Sieve, Percy & Judy Menzies, Stuckey Family, Joey Jones, Matthew Willey, Blake Tivoli, Justin M. Greenberg Hope Fund Sponsorships were in attendance.
In addition, organizations that we work with and partner with were also present: NCADA, Saint Louis University, Addiction is Real, and MO-PROS. Each one of these groups makes up the ARCHway community.
Each one of these groups is the reason ARCHway is able to do the work they do. And it is this kind of community that is needed, to surround and provide hope, to those affected by a substance use disorder.
The Event Speakers
The program started with Master of Ceremonies and ARCHway Board Member, Fred Rottnek, M.D., Mark Shields, CEO, and Dan and Jan Stuckey, co-founders of ARCHway, spoke as well, further highlighting ARCHway’s work and the support of the ARCHway community. There was a guest appearance by Sam Page, St. Louis County Executive, who spoke on the work being accomplished in St. Louis to combat the opiate epidemic.
Saint Louis University’s Family and Community Medicine Department was awarded ARCHway’s Health Award in response to the work they are doing to forward the field of Addiction Medicine. Christine Jacobs, MD and Katie Heiden-Rootes, PhD, accepted the award on behalf of the department. ARCHway is proud to support Saint Louis University for establishing the first and only Addiction Medicine Fellowship in Missouri and for their work to recognize and elevate peer support specialists by introducing them into classroom and field work. Katie Heiden-Rootes, PhD, Assistant Professor and the Director of Clinical Services in the Medical Family Therapy Program at SLU, also spoke highly on her experience working with ARCHway peers in the classroom setting.
Many in attendance at this event were in recovery themselves. In fact, there was a large number of peers representing Recovery House STL, transitional living in St. Louis. An example, Jordan Hampton, was our keynote speaker for the event. Jordan spoke on his personal recovery, his growth as a professional in the field with the help of ARCHway Institute, and his work today as the Executive Director of Recovery House STL. Jordan spoke about the unity of the recovery community and the treatment community.
In order for people to get better, they have to be provided with the right resources, and when we unite, those resources are available to them.
ARCHway HOPE Fund Sponsors
Raised – $40,200 / Target – $50,000
Funds the ARCHway Institute scholarship program to provide access to treatment, housing, and additional resources. ARCHway currently has 32 HOPE Fund Sponsorships. For more information, click here.
Advocates of HOPE
Raised – $37,110 / Target – $35,000
Funds ARCHway’s Certified Peer Specialists in helping families and individuals find information, treatment, and financial resources needed on their recovery journey. This allows for hopeful support through the process.
Book of Hope
Raised – $21,850 / Target – 25,000
Funds the publication of this resource for the public, families, and individuals to learn how to unite in order to support recovery during each phase of this lengthy process. This book will provide hope and share the ARCHway Institute story. For more information and to read our short stories of hope, click here.
Event Donors
ARCHway Institute would like to thank all the event donors and sponsors. We had over 90 sponsors for the event and 40 donors for our silent auction.
Special thanks to Local 110, LiUNA Midwest, and Ullico. Special thanks to the committee and the volunteers for their hard work. We could not do this important work without you all!
