b'A Struggling Teen Learns to Thrive Jasons Path from Recovery to LeadershipThe Riverside staff at Life Skills accepted me for who I am. So if I changedI accept this award acknowledging my effort and achievements, but only something, like a name, pronoun, or gender, they always backed me up. on behalf of my Riverside and family supports whose hard work and caringKaeya allowed me to pursue recovery. The best is yet to come!Jason, at the 2023 Riverside CARE AwardsKaeya struggled with anxiety, depression, suicidal ideation and self-harm throughout his teens. Jason started working with Riversides Adult Community Clinical Services (ACCS) after a long-term Before coming to Riverside, the 17-year-oldwas constantly moving between emergency rooms andpsychiatric hospitalization. He diligently attended Dual Recovery Anonymous (DRA) meetings for residential facilities, without any improvement to his mental health. people with co-occurring mental health and addiction recovery challenges and embraced Riversides Crossroads Clubhouses work-ordered day, where members and staff work together in Clubhouse Riversides Life Skills Program proved to be a perfect fit for Kaeya. The goal-oriented setting gave himoperations. the time, resources, and care he needed to continually improve his daily functioning and well-being. He learned to integrate coping skills into his daily lifewalking his dog Stella, listening to music, andAs a proud veteran, Jason brings his military work ethic and organizational skills to his recoverytalking to his parentsand became comfortable advocating for his needs. Hes now safer, happier,journey (as well as his many calendars and planners!). This discipline is evident in his steadyand more independent than ever.development of key life skills and his eagerness to tackle the next steps in his recovery. Whetherimproving his fishing skills with Riverside employees, working through the 12 steps of the DRANow thriving in college, Kaeya is pursuing a degree in psychology so he can help kids who struggleprogram, or climbing to the top of Mount Wachusett, he never gives up on achieving his goals.like he did. Jason was a valuable resource to others as an instructor for a DRA Leadership DevelopmentCertification pilot program, and for two years he has run weekly DRA meetings that he started. Clubhouse members praise the wisdom and structure he brings to these gatherings and the growth theyve achieved under his leadership. Accepted into Riversides Recovery Coach Academy, JasonWatch Kaeya share his story now serves as an instructor for the DRA Leadership Certification program and continues to apply his own experience to helping others in their recovery journeys. 4 With locations in Needham, Milford, and Somerville, Life Skills is a therapeutic day program for adolescentsRiversides Adult Community Clinical Services (ACCS) program provides individuals living with mental illness with 5designed to help them gain insight into their mental health challenges, improve their self-esteem, and enhancean array of services to help them develop skills and resources for a successful life in their community. We collaborate social skills. with individuals and their support systems to create treatment plans that promote resiliency and recovery.'