The pandemic has magnified the need to address addiction and related mental health issues in our congregations and surrounding communities. One family in three has direct experience with someone suffering from addiction and often more with related mental health issues. The faith community can play a vital role in prevention and recovery; yet are sometimes reluctant or uncomfortable talking about these issues.

An informed clergy, supported by committed, trained congregational members has a tremendous opportunity to serve people who suffer; a prevention and recovery support team offers real hope. Faith Partners provides a thoughtful four-step process to start an effective, sustainable team to address the needs of the whole congregation.

Leadership Training: This workshop goal is to equip participants to take the initial steps in developing a congregational team ministry. This is the first workshop in the training series. As a result of this workshop, participants will be better able to:

• Learn what a congregational prevention and recovery support team does;
• Recognize the barriers to starting these efforts;
• Identify the role of leadership (clergy and laity); and
• Demonstrate specific steps to building a team and congregational support.

Faith Partners team initial activities often fall into the general areas of awareness, education and recovery support. These efforts often grow in relationship to the team’s capacity, the congregation’s needs and receptivity, and the congregation’s missional focus. Teams often broaden their focus from substance use disorders to other addictions to mental health issues as the need presents itself, creating an educational platform for understanding on a variety of issues.

Faith Partners, a non-profit organization established in 1995, provides leadership, training, and consultation to educate clergy and develop congregational prevention and recovery support teams. This evidence-based intervention model has been established in hundreds and hundreds of congregations from 24 different faith traditions in 30 states. Faith Partners, in partnership with the Clinton Foundation – Opioid Response Network’s Empower Faith Leaders Program in California, through a contract funded by the Sierra Health Partners, is working with clergy and congregations to develop greater capacity and establish effective, sustainable teams to address substance use disorders, other addictions, and related mental health issues.