I’ve been with Cochise Harm Reduction since 2022. I started as the Outreach Coordinator and over the last year, I’ve stepped into peer navigation, and I’m really proud to say I’ve just been promoted to our full-time Peer Navigator.
This work means everything to me because I’ve lived it. I know what it’s like to struggle with addiction. I know what it feels like to be judged, to feel stuck, to not know where to turn—and to finally have someone show up who sees you as a human being, not a problem or lost cause.
Getting into this field wasn’t easy. A lot of people looked at my past and didn’t think I belonged in a professional role. But I believe that lived experience is exactly what makes this work real. I’ve been there. And now, I get to help others find their way, just like someone once did for me.
I’m not here to fix anyone—I’m here to walk alongside them. To remind them they’re not alone, they’re not broken, they are loved just how they are! That’s what peer work is all about. It’s not about “fixing” someone it’s about giving someone the freedom to choose their own path and accepting and loving them through it!