In November Mountain Star Rehabilitation Foundation celebrated the DWI Drug Court's 13th anniversary! To view the newsletter and check out the photographs please see the images below or download click here.pdf
Friday, December 22, 2017
Tuesday, October 31, 2017
MSRF Newsletter October 2017
Our special holiday issue! Happy Halloween El Paso!! Mountain Star Rehabilitation Foundation October 2017 Newsletter: click here.pdf
MSRF Newsletter September 2017
“There are millions of Americans whose lives have been transformed through recovery. Since these successes often go unnoticed by the broader population, Recovery Month provides a vehicle for everyone to celebrate those accomplishments.”
This fall has definitely been a busy one for us all! Nevertheless, graduations are happening and in September our Board President was honored with an invite to participate in the National Association for Drug Court Professionals (NADCP) Graduate Peer Engagement Meeting! It was an opportunity to bring back a lot of resources and ideas moving forward! In September, we recognized Recovery Month in our newsletter.
To view the newsletter pages simply click on the images! You can also download the PDF by clicking on the link below.
Mountain Star Rehabilitation Foundation September 2017 Newsletter: click here.pdf
Sunday, September 3, 2017
MSRF Newsletter August 2017
The latest Mountain Star Rehabilitation Foundation Newsletter highlights the graduation ceremony experience courtesy of photography from our Youth Connection Ambassador, Alex Montoya! Special thanks to Alex, the graduates and their families. We’re excited to continue documenting the graduation moments and celebrating participants as they take the next steps in their recovery journey. More photographs will be posted at the Mountain Star Rehabilitation Foundation gallery and social media sites at Facebook and Twitter.
To view the newsletter pages simply click on the images! You can also download the PDF below.
Celebrating Graduation at the DWI Drug Court 2017!
Friday, August 4, 2017
Light of Recovery Podcast #4
"Fighting for Recovery"
Light of Recovery Podcast #4 click here
Light of Recovery Podcast #4 click here
featuring an interview with
Robert Vega, Jr.
The Light of Recovery Podcast is brought to you by the Mountain Star Rehabilitation Foundation in El Paso, Texas. This summer we connected with Robert Vega, Jr. to discuss an idea we have to introduce health & wellness activities into the conversation of recovery. The idea is to add a health & wellness component to the Mountain Star Rehabilitation Foundation and promote health & wellness to participants, graduates and families of the DWI Drug Court program. Our first proposed health & wellness initiative is called Fighting for Recovery. Fighting for Recovery explores how the training associated with boxing can help promote recovery and engage participants in fitness activity for themselves, their families, and peers. In the podcast Mr. Vega also reflects on his turbulent past that included a 10 year prison sentence, six years of which he served in solitary confinement. He discusses how he was able to realize his goals and purpose in the community not only through boxing but through a variety of creative opportunities. Today Mr. Vega is a certified boxing trainer, college graduate, community advocate, actor, accomplished vocalist, motivational speaker, and is on a mission to help others. The podcast also includes thoughts from DWI Drug Court Alumni, Jose Montoya on how the training Mr. Vega provides has helped him and his son. He also shares thoughts on the importance of health & wellness for sustaining lifelong recovery.
We conclude the podcast with a song by an artist named Tres who released A Project of Recovery booklet/CD titled 'The Warrior' in 1992. The track is titled ((Warrior)). In the liner notes Tres states the following... "I want to say that writing the lyrics and composing the music of "Warrior" was by far the most therapeutic of exercises I have undertaken in my recovery simply because it has allowed me to tell the secrets. We are, after all, as sick as our secrets. By disclosing those secrets, we are victims no longer. We become, "WARRIORS"."
As you listen to the podcast you will hear us discuss a paper that Mr. Vega wrote about 8 years ago titled 'Reformation of the United States Justice System'. Listeners can download and read the document by clicking on the following Dropbox link: click here
The Light of Recovery Podcast features members of our Recovery community in El Paso, Texas. Our goal is to provide a platform for the Recovery community to be heard and for the message and stories of recovery to be documented. El Paso County, in particular, has an extensive history in its connection to the Recovery movement. This podcast is done in effort to bring those recovery stories to light and engage listeners in a conversation about specific topics that we hope provide people with knowledge and inspiration.
The Light of Recovery Podcast also features music from the local community and from artist, musicians, poets, and other forms of spoken word. If you have music that you would like for us to feature please send us your music audio files or CD to recoveryelpaso@gmail.com or mailing address 1712 Texas Avenue Suite 10B, El Paso, Texas 79901-1810 ATTN Mountain Star Rehabilitation Foundation. If you're submitting music please consider the theme of our program and our goal to feature stories that are focused on recovery. The Light of Recovery Podcast broadcasts episodes throughout the year.
Mountain Star Rehabilitation Foundation is a non-profit organization 501(c)3 in El Paso County that provides recovery support for participants and families of the DWI Drug Court Intervention and Treatment Program. The mission of MSRF is to help address the recovery needs of participants and their families. Through our efforts with the Light of Recovery Podcast and other multi/social media projects we aspire to reach anyone and everyone engaged in recovery or interested in learning more.
Thank you for listening!
Lecroy 'Lee' Rhyanes
MSRF Board Secretary
Light of Recovery Podcast Host
MSRF Newsletter July 2017
Our latest newsletter is out for the summer! This newsletter focuses on our experience in July at the National Association of Drug Court Professionals #NADCP17 Advancing Justice Conference. Throughout our website and social media Twitter and Facebook you will find many photographs from the event. In addition we’re planning a future Light of Recovery podcast reflecting on the the conference and the Board President’s recovery testimony which he delivered in front of thousands of people at the National Harbor. More details are included in the newsletter below! To sign up for our mailing list please email us your first and last name and primary email contact at recoveryelpaso@gmail.com. Thank you!
To view the newsletter pages simply click on the images!
NADCP 2017 Advancing Justice Conference
Friday, July 7, 2017
MSRF Newsletter
Introducing the MSRF Newsletter! The newsletter includes updates and announcements from the Mountain Star Rehabilitation Foundation to keep the community and our partners informed of our activities and progress! You can view the newsletter by clicking on the images below or download the newsletter as a PDF: DOWNLOAD!
Wednesday, June 21, 2017
May 3, 2017 Celebration
Celebration Honoring the El Paso DWI Drug Court
Intervention and Treatment Program
On May 3, 2017, the El Paso County Commissioner's Court celebrated the accomplishments of the El Paso DWI Drug Court Intervention and Treatment Program. It was a wonderful opportunity to reflect on the program's success. Mountain Star Rehabilitation Foundation Board President was in attendance to share his thoughts and to recognize the drug court team for their continued success!
Special thanks to the office of Andrew Haggerty for documenting the photograph featured above of Mountain Star Rehabilitation Foundation Board President Jose Montoya and the photograph featured below of those in attendance.
Below is a photo of recognition plaques for members of the El Paso DWI Drug Court team from the Mountain Star Rehabilitation Foundation.
Sunday, February 19, 2017
Smart Start Feature: Jose Montoya
Regaining a License on the Road & on Life
Mountain Star Rehabilitation Foundation Board President, Jose Montoya's story on how Smart Start's ignition interlock helped pave the road to recovery.
Read the full story at Smart Start's Blog: click here
Below is an excerpt from the story. For the full story please visit the Smart Start Blog at the following link: https://www.smartstartinc.com/blog/regaining-a-license-on-the-road-and-on-life/
“Interlocks are a tool for recovery.”
When ordered to use an Interlock, Jose says clients will feel the same way – they are being punished. “What people don’t understand at first is that the Interlock is a tool for recovery. The DWI program is a mix of supervision, treatment and tools. That is how I saw Interlocks later … it is a tool I need to have under my belt to recover.”
During his program, driving with the Interlock struck another chord. Every time he was blowing into the device, it was a reminder to him that being able to drive was a privilege. Jose had been behind the wheel since he was 12-years-old – driving did not mean that much to him until an Interlock had to be installed in his vehicle.
“Interlocks are a way to help individuals get better,” Jose said. “In the beginning stages of someone’s recovery, they need a lot of structure. They need a lot of people, support and tools. I see the Interlock as being an amazing tool to understand you are starting your recovery. You are making a change for yourself.”
Saturday, January 28, 2017
Light of Recovery Podcast #3
Light of Recovery Podcast #3 click here
featuring an interview with
Ernesto Valdez
The Light of Recovery Podcast is brought to you by the Mountain Star Rehabilitation Foundation in El Paso, Texas. This is the third Light of Recovery Podcast recording and the first to kick of the new year 2017. For podcast #3 we sat down with Ernesto Valdez who graduated from the DWI Drug Court Intervention & Treatment program on December 29, 2016. This podcast explores his recovery story from the beginning and his impact on the recovery community today as a coach and educator. Mr. Montoya also shares the microphone with Mr. Valdez to discuss the DWI Drug Court graduation that concluded the previous year.
In addition, we conclude the podcast with a music recording conducted a couple of years ago at the Aliviane Men's Residential Treatment Center on Socorro Road. The recording was facilitated by Board Secretary and Light of Recovery podcast host Lecroy Rhyanes and features Christopher, Angel, and the two Ricardos. The recording is titled "18 with a Bullet" and is significant since the recording was conducted at a time when Mr. Valdez was beginning treatment. Mr. Valdez was present during the "18 with a Bullet" recording session.
The Light of Recovery Podcast features members of our Recovery community in El Paso, Texas. Our goal is to provide a platform for the Recovery community to be heard and for the message and stories of recovery to be documented. El Paso County, in particular, has an extensive history in its connection to the Recovery movement. This podcast is done in effort to bring those recovery stories to light and engage listeners in a conversation about specific topics that we hope provide people with knowledge and inspiration.
The Light of Recovery Podcast also features music from the local community and from artist, musicians, poets, and other forms of spoken word. If you have music that you would like for us to feature please send us your music audio files or CD to recoveryelpaso@gmail.com or mailing address 1712 Texas Avenue Suite 10B, El Paso, Texas 79901-1810 ATTN Mountain Star Rehabilitation Foundation. If you're submitting music please consider the theme of our program and our goal to feature stories that are focused on recovery. The Light of Recovery Podcast broadcasts one episode each month towards the end of the month.
Mountain Star Rehabilitation Foundation is a non-profit organization 501(c)3 in El Paso County that provides recovery support for participants and families of the DWI Drug Court Intervention and Treatment Program. The mission of MSRF is to help address the recovery needs of participants and their families. Through our efforts with the Light of Recovery Podcast and other multi/social media projects we aspire to reach anyone and everyone engaged in recovery or interested in learning more.
Thank you for listening!
Lecroy 'Lee' Rhyanes
MSRF Board Secretary
Light of Recovery Podcast Host
Monday, January 9, 2017
Inmate Rehablitation in TX
Report: Don't cut funding for inmate rehabilitation
John C Moritz , USA Today Network 5:01 p.m. MT Dec. 31, 2016
Source: El Paso Times
Programs keeping probationers out of prison are less costly in the long run, a study by the Texas House Corrections Committee argues.
AUSTIN – When lawmakers return to Austin in 10 days to begin grappling with what appears will be a bare-bones state budget, a legislative panel that oversees the Texas prison system is urging them to resist cutting funding for programs that help former inmates and probationers adjust to free-world life.
“As (the prison system) cannot cut back on the security and public safety components of their mission, it is likely that many of the programs that are making a real difference will face the axe,” says a report released over the holidays by the Texas House Corrections Committee.
“The state that leads the nation in executions also leads the nation in providing alternatives to incarceration,” the report adds. “An American state that used to be infamous for its ‘lock 'em up and throw away the key’ approach to crime is now providing an unlikely inspiration to other states and countries.”
The 68-page report that the panel will likely use as a blueprint for legislative initiatives once 2017 session begins Jan. 10 makes several recommendations, include lowering the fees that probationers must pay, opting out of a federal program that requires the suspension of a driver’s license for anyone convicted of possessing even a small amount of marijuana and sealing the criminal records for qualifying former inmates who remain out of trouble for a specified period of time.
The report comes some 20 years after Texas leaders frustrated by rising crime rates completed a massive prison building program that tripled the system’s capacity. It even uses a phrase once thought to be politically toxic is describing the state’s approach for helping lawbreakers return to society.
“Texas is a leader by being ‘softer on crime,’ although we prefer the word ‘smarter,’” it says. “It's something to think about as we head into the next legislative session.”
Doug Smith, a criminal justice policy analyst in Austin, said backing away from programs designed to rehabilitate offenders as a way to save money would actually prove more expensive to taxpayers in the long run because it costs more to send people to prison than it does to provide a path to success.
“There were 23,000 felony probation revocations last year,” said Smith, who works with the Texas Criminal Justice Coalition, a reform-minded nonprofit. “And most of them were for technical violations, not new offenses.”
He said probation revocations accounted for about one-third of the all incoming state jail and state prison inmates last year. And each prisoner costs the state about $54 a day compared with the $8 a day a probationer costs taxpayers.
The committee report says probation revocations, while still relatively high, have been steadily dropping for about a decade as lawmakers began devoting more resources to programs aimed at reducing inmates’ and probationers’ substance addictions and arming them with job skills.
During that period, the report says, Texas’ crime rate has dropped about 20 percent while recidivism rates declined from 28 percent to 21 percent.
During a hearing in February, Corrections Committee Chairman Jim Murphy said it’s important that inmates and probationers believe that the state is committed to programs aimed at minimizing the chance that they’ll be back behind bars.
“I am thinking about the dynamic of someone being in the system, wanting to improve themselves, and being told ‘you're not a priority,’” said Murphy, a Houston Republican. “If we're trying to get someone not to recidivate, that's exactly opposite of what I think the intended result would be.”
According to the report, which Murphy signed in early December before its release last week, the fees associated with being on probation can be insurmountable for offenders struggling to find employment. Probationers are charged upward of $60 a month to help cover the cost of supervision.
Many are required to take and pay for classes aimed at fighting addiction or controlling anger and violence. Probationers who lose driving privileges can be required to take a class to have the license reinstated and pay up to $325 before being allowed to drive, even if it’s just to and from work.
The list goes on.
“There are fees for records management, for juries, for judicial support, for court security, and for indigent defense,” the committee’s report says. “Pages and pages of fees. It boggles the mind to read it. Think of what it must be like to live it.”
Often, the report continues, judges who impose the costs have little information regarding an offender’s ability to pay them.
“In an era when you can find out your credit score for free on the internet, would it be that difficult to determine if a person is indigent prior to appearing before a judge?” the report asks.
The committee’s report points out that in April 2016, Pennsylvania enacted legislation, allowing criminal records of qualified nonviolent offenders to be sealed for offenders who remain free of legal trouble for 10 years. The records of those charged but not convicted of a crime can be sealed after 60 days.
Many offenders who do wind up in prison never fully recover as productive citizens, said Smith, the criminal justice policy analyst. Their chances at landing a decent job, or even a call-back from a would-be employer, plummet, he said. Student loans are off the table and finding decent housing is more difficult, he said.
Bill Hammond, who recently retired as chief executive of the Texas Association of Business and helped launch the Texas Smart on Crime Coalition, said helping probationers stay out of prison is good for the state’s economy.
“Probation is not a walk in the park, and it’s not supposed to be,” said Hammond, a Republican state representative in the 1980s. “But you want these folks working, paying taxes and sticking with their families. We have too many people in prison who don’t need to be there.”
John C. Moritz covers Texas government and politics for the USA Today Network in Austin. Contact him at John.Moritz@caller.com and follow him on Twitter @JohnnieMo.
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